Making A Family
by BeckyBelikova9
Summary: Sequel to 'You Can't Choose Your Family'. Four Years later, Olena and Benedikt are married, as are Mikhail and Sonya. Rose and Dimitri are dying with jealousy when they see their family and friends with their children. Then, Rose gets pregnant. Not what you're thinking, I swear. Disclaimer: I own only the plot, Benedikt, and children under the age of four :P
1. Wedding no 3

It seems so much longer than four years, yet that's all it's been. It's probably because so much has happened in that short time span, making it seem so much longer. Lissa changed the quorum law, Jill took her spot on the council last year, and has surpassed expectations, the movement for moroi combat training is gaining momentum daily, moroi using offensive magic is currently under discussion, and Dimitri was offered the position of advisor to the Gaurdian Council. Of course, it's not only the changes to moroi law that we've helped implement that's kept us all busy. No, we've had to plan weddings, help defend our friends relationships from their parents, had three pregnancy scares (Lissa, Sydney, and then Lissa again), waited in the hospital for a proud Mikhail to come tell us whether it was a boy or a girl, and supported the Dragomir princess, when she hooked up with one of her gaurdians. Today, we were kept busy with making sure one of those weddings, went according to plan.

"You look amazing," I told Lissa, as she examined herself from every angle in the full-lenght mirror. Wearing an A-line, pure white silk gown, with the sleeves and neck made of lace, and a veil pinned in her hair, I thought she looked breathtaking. I also didn't need a bond, to tell that she was nervous. Her eyes were bright, and she spoke slightly breathlessly.

"You really think so?"

"Yeah," I nodded. I was really trying not ot tear up. In just ten minutes, Lissa would walk down that aisle, meet Christian, and they would become husband and wife. The happiest day of my best friend's life. I felt joyous, and overwhelmed, for her. I really hoped I wasn't going to start crying during the ceremony. I was on maid-of-honour duty today, not gaurdian duty, but I still didn't want to compromise my tough-girl status by turning on the water works. "You are beautiful."

Lissa's other bridesmaids, Jill, Mia and Sydney, all of us wearing the same short sleeved, jade green dresses, came in just then, and after fussing with Lissa's skirt a bit more, and fixing her veil, it was time. Lissa made eye contact with me briefly, before grabbing my hand, and I supported her to the vestibule of the church. An hour, and thirty minutes later, in a beautiful and moving ceremony, with all their family and friends, the Court's church completely full, Lissa and Christian were married. I did in fact tear up a little. But only a little.

The reception looked _incredible_. It took place in the large hall in the palace, with everyone from the church in attendance. The walls were draped with both the Ozera and Dragomir family crests, the tables covered with bloodred tablecloths, real candles on every table, and fake crystal torches, that could easily pass for real, all along the walls. It was a great party. Currently, the band was playing _Party Rock Anthem_, and only the guests under the age of twenty-five were dancing. Christian had clearly coerced the band into it, and him and Lissa, Jill and Eddie, and Sydney and Adrian, were rocking out. Adrian was demonstrating the shuffle to a laughing Sydney. I couldn't see Mikhail and Sonya, as of three years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Tanner, anywhere.

Dimitri was over at one of the tables, talking to his parents, grandmother, and sisters, while I brought Zoya and Rurik over to one of the tables at the side of the hall that still had cupcakes, and was trying to decide whether I wanted the strawberry one, or the chocolate one. The kids had already grabbed theirs, and run over to my parents, to show them the pretty cakes. My parents were surprisingly good with small children. I'd been apprehensive about introducing my mother and Olena, but they'd really hit it off, and, to Dimitri's intense embarrassment, had had a 'who was the crazier teenager?' competition, the both of them crying with mirth, between me and Dimitri. Naturally, I won.

I had just decided on the chocolate cupcake, and maybe come back for the strawberry one later, when I heard something that peeked my interest.

"Yes, Annabella is delighted with the clinic. It did take them two tries, but at her age, the fact that she got pregnant at all is simply fantastic."

"Still, though, a _sperm clinic_. It would be _mortifying_ if it got out, wouldn't it? And can the child take the Lazar name?"

I froze, and looked out of the corner of my eyes, to see two middle aged moroi women, having just sat down at one of the tables near me. I pretended to deliberate my cupcake decision a bit more, so I could listen to them gossip about their friend's husband's fertility troubles. Apparently, _she_ was able to carry a child, but _he_ couldn't get her pregnant. Hearing this I could barely breathe, and I kept hoping that they would mention the name of the clinic. Eventually, when a fast paced waltz started, Dimitri came to ask me to dance, putting an end to my eavesdropping. Behind him, I could see my mother dancing with Ben, and Olena being twirled around by Abe.

"What's that look for?" Dimitri asked with a smile, leading me towards the dance floor. "Should I be worried?"

"Should you be worried? Absolutely," I responded lightly, as he spun me around, before putting one hand on my waist, and catching my left hand in his right. "But I'm not going to tell you now. It'll ruin the party."

"Oh, this should be good. Just give me hint. Is it to do with Lissa's new proposal? An idea for the upgraded curriculum? Please don't tell me you want something like this, for _our_ wedding?"

I rolled my eyes, and unconsciously fingered the simple siver band, and princess cut diamond on my ring finger. On the inside, it had a thorny rose engraved, surrounding the words, _moya lyubovʹ_, my love, in russian. Dimitri had proposed three months ago, catching me completely by surprise. We'd talked about marriage sure, I _wanted_ to marry him, but I hadn't thought that he'd ask so soon. It hadn't been anything big, or fancy. He'd just brought me breakfast in bed, and asked me. I'd responded 'yes' immediately.

"You know full well that if I had my way, we'd have grabbed Lissa and Christian last month, and signed the papers in the court house." Okay, that wasn't _entirely_ true, but I still didn't want a _huge_ fuss. Dimitri wanted one even less. We'd decided to get married on the beach, in Hawaii, with a Justice of the Peace. We even had everything planned, and organised. Olena had wanted us to get married in Baia's gigantic cathedral, but neither Dimitir nor I wanted something so religious. My mother didn't care as long as we were happy. It was the same with Abe and Ben. Which was lucky, as they were paying. The wedding was taking place in May, in just seven months.

Dimitri dipped me, and brought his lips to mine, before righting me and saying "You're not going to tell me are you?"

I shook my head and smiled. Dimitri gave up, seeing a lost cause, and we danced for the rest of the song. Once it was over, Ben cut in, and Dimitri grabbed Lissa, twirling her around. He didn't need to know quite yet. I wasn't even sure if it was a viable option, if we could actually do this. All I knew was, that I had to see if it was possible. I loved seeing Zoya and Rurik, when they came over every August, loved playing with them, and reading them stories. But in the last five months, since Mikhail and Sonya's daughter, Celia, had been born, I practically exploded with jealousy when I saw the three of them with their parents, knowing that Dimitri and I could never have that. Never have our own family. Have to settle for being the cool aunt and uncle. I didn't know that moroi sperm clinics even existed. Now I did, and I was going to find out everything I could. I was going to try, and make this happen. But I couldn't tell Dimitri just yet. I couldn't get his hopes up.


	2. Exciting Prospects

When you see a golden opportunity right in front of you, or you have the chance to set up a golden opportunity for youself, you have no idea how hard it is not to go after it right away. How _agonizing_ it is to have to wait to go and check it out. I wanted to go into headquarters and find out something about the clinic the very next day, but had to go with the lovebirds to the airport so they could head off on their honeymoon: two weeks in Rio de Janeiro. Dimitri was going with them as Christian's gaurdian, but I wasn't part of Lissa's guard. Ten Royal Guards were going with them, so basically, half of us had two weeks off. Saying good-bye, Dimitri thought that I seemed a bit distracted.

"I'm fine," I told him waving off his concerns, but he wasn't buying it. We were standing at the bottom of the stairs of the private jet that would be taking everyone to Brazil. Everyone else had already boarded.

"Is this about whatever you were thinking about last night?"

"Yes," I said after a moment. "But I'm still not going to tell you. Not yet," I added, as Dimitri opened his mouth to protest. "I need to check something out first, then I shall regale you with all the details of my master plan," I finished grandly.

Dimitri just sighed, kissed me one last time, and boarded the plane, saying he'd call when they landed. He was used to my crazy plans by now, and knew to just let me get on with it. I watched the plane take off, and disappear into the night sky. I wanted to go straight to the office to look up that clinic, but instead I headed towards guest housing, where I was to meet the Belikovs. They were leaving Court in a few hours, and had to pack. My parents had left an hour ago.

After helping everyone get their luggage to the cars in the garages, and then getting a quick lunch, I said goodbye to everyone and watched them drive away. They needed two cars, as Karolina and Sonya's boyfriends, Saveliy and Savva, had come too. Not to mention Ben's guardians and all the kids. It was a good thing Karolina had moved out, and that Sonya and Savva were looking for a house. With the birth of Yulian, Viktoria's two month old son, who she'd left with a friend, and who Dimitri and I had never seen, the house was about to explode.

I had mixed feelings as I watched the car driving out of the garage. On the one hand, I was going to really miss them. Paul was turning into a cool teenager, who was beginning to gravitate towards me and Dimitri, his guardian relatives, and Zoya and Rurik were the cutest little kids on the planet. On the other, now I was free to go look up that clinic.

I practically flew into headquarters, up the stairs and into the office where we all did up our monthly reports, thankfully not meeting anyone. It was a large square room, with computer terminals all along the walls, and a central bank down the middle of the room. I had access to every file in our system with these computers. I sat down, and impatiently waited for the computer to boot up. Once it did, I began searching for anything to do with the sperm clinic. I went into the MAAM – Medical Association of American Moroi – directory, and found it within minutes. It was true. There was a small clinic, called the Family Institute, located in Atlanta, Georgia. According to the file, they were equiped to handle the donation, taking eggs from the mother, fertilisation, and implantation of the embyos, all right there in the clinic. It also had profiles on all the doctors and staff in the clinic, including schooling, past jobs, full background checks basically.

I combed carefully through the file, taking in every scrap of information, and scribbling down the contact number and e-mail address. According to the file, they used IVF, instead of artificial insemnation, as IVF was much more efficient for moroi. I couldn't believe this. A chance for me and Dimitri to have a baby. An actual, bonafide chance for me and Dimitri to have a family of our own. I stayed perfectly still, staring at the screen, trying to process this. I could get pregnant. Dimitri and I could have a child. I was so transfixed on the screen, that I didn't notice the door behind me open, or Hans come up behind me, until he spoke.

"What are you looking at?"

I jumped, turned off the computer, and sprang up to face Hans, trying to play it cool, but it was no use. Hans had already seen. He looked at me sympathetically, as I tried to come up with something, anything, to say.

"Just catching up on some paper work," I responded, moving past him towards the door. "I'll be leaving now."

"Hathaway," Hans said kindly, catching my arm. "That clinic does exactly what it claims, and does it well, but you know those treatments are really expensive, right? And, no offence, but I know how much you and Belikov earn. You'll be saving for about two decades."

He had a point about mine and Dimitri's salaries, but when I turned twenty-one, I got a letter from a bank in New York. Abe had apparently set up a trust fund for me when I was born. There was over half a million in the account. Ben had likewise saved for Dimitri, giving him access to it soon after he'd re-entered his life. So far, all we'd spent the money on was a month long trip to Russia last Christmas. Okay, I may have bought some clothes. But other than that, the money was just sitting there.

"Dimitri and I will be fine, money-wise," I told him, as I moved out of his grasp. "As long as this clinic is legit." I stood there awkwardly for a moment. "Thanks, for your concern, but I really should be going now – "

"Hathaway," Hans interrupted loudly. "Are you serious about this?"

"No," I said, throwing out my arms. "I'm just looking up a sperm bank for kicks!" He just looked at me. "Yes I'm serious!" I put my hands on my hips and glared at him, as though daring him to tell me it was ridiculous, or that someone with job like mine couldn't possibly raise a child. He didn't say anything of the sort.

"Well," Hans said, a little awkwardly, after a long silence. "I wish you and Belikov luck, and tell me when you're planning on doing this, so I know when you'll be going on maternity leave." With that, Hans turned to a computer terminal and sat down, booting it up, his back to me. "You still here?"

I was speechless. "That's it?" I asked. "No, are you for real? How are you two going to do this with your responsibilities? Are you crazy?"

"Hathaway, I've worked with you for four years," Hans replied, spinning around in the desk chair. "I know you're crazy. I also know," he added, "That when someone tells you something is impossible, you tend to take it as a personal challenge, so no reason two dhampirs having a family should be any different. If you want to do this, then I say good luck, and none of my business. Until you need maternity leave." With that he spun around again, fixing some schedules for the next month, leaving me gaping at him.

"Okay, right," I stammered after a minute. "But if you could just, not say anything to anyone, that would be great, I mean I haven't even discussed this with Dimitri yet – "

"He doesn't know?" Hans spun around again. "You just decided to do this on your own?"

"I only found out about the damn place existed last night," I shot back. "I wasn't about to tell him in the middle of the reception, and he left this morning, so it's not like we had the chance to have a full blown discussion!"

"Fair enough," Hans said slowly. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but grimaced and started to slowly spin back around.

"Spit it out Hans," I sighed.

"It's none of my business."

"Tell me anyway." Still, he hesitated. "Come on, give it to me. I can take it."

He sighed, then said slowly, "It's just that, well, does Belikov even want kids?"

My mouth fell open. I hadn't even considered that possibility. "I don't know. I think so, but it's not like we've ever discussed it. I mean, we've had no reason to." I shrugged. "He's great with his sisters' kids. I _think_ he wants one of his own."

Hans looked at me knowingly. "Will he see the kid as one of his own?"

My jaw dropped again, but I shut it quickly and glared at Hans. "I really wish I hadn't asked now."

Hans just shrugged, and spun back around, hiding a smirk. "It's your own fault."

I was nearly at the door when Hans called out "Hey, you know him better than me. If you think that he wants kids, you're probably right."

I nodded, and told him that I'd see him later, before heading home. Once I got to my apartment in the palace, I made a call to the clinic in Atlanta. I was put through to one of the doctors, who talked me through the procedure, and the cost, not to mention their success rates, as well as any risks invloved. I had the poor man on the phone for a good hour, asking him anything I could think of. I declined making an appointment however, as I really should talk to Dimitri first.

I went to bed that night with my head spinning. Not just with what the doctor told me, but with what Hans said as well. I _was_ pretty sure that Dimitri wanted kids. Was pretty sure that he'd been jealous when he saw Mikhail holding Celia for the first time. I turned my head to look over at Dimitri's side of the bed. I had been fighting the feeling all day, as I had things that I needed to take care of, but now I was able to let myself miss him. I couldn't wait for him to come home. And to make matters worse, I had this exciting news to tell him, and wasn't even sure if Dimitri was going to see it as exciting. This was going to be a long two weeks.


	3. Saying Hello

"Can anyone see the plane?"

"For the last time, _no_. They're not due for another ten minutes at least. Now will you _please_ stop asking?" Tom whispered back furiously out of the side of his mouth. From his countenance, you'd never tell how much I was annoying him.

I just shrugged. Next to me, I heard Kyle and Gregor snigger. Since Pawel, captain of the Royal Guard, had gone to Brazil, Tom, as his second in command, was in charge. And he'd gone power crazy. For the past week we'd all been doing our best to drive him as nuts, as he was driving us. Well, I was. The others were just egging me on. Immature yes, but we were all close enough that Tom would find it funny in about a week. Or he'd switch the sugar in my kitchen with salt. Either way, he'd get over it.

Currently, we were all in our black and white uniform, standing on the side of the runway, shivering considering it was the start of December, waiting for the jet, so we could welcome back our queen, her husband and our colleagues. I was standing at the end of a red carpet, in between Kyle and Gregor, with Tom on the other side of Kyle. The barriers that we'd set up were just holding back the crowd that had turned up to welcome back Lissa and Christian. Most of the staff and full time residents had shown up. Kaleo, Phil, Marios, Vitali, Kuzma and Harry, Royal guards who'd stayed behind with us, were spread out acting as far-guards. Other Court guardians were interspersed amongst the crowd. Everyone was making regular check-ins, and we had the place locked down tight.

I was just about to ask again, when someone yelled out that they could see the plane. Five minutes later, the plan had come to a stop, and the door had opened right at the top of the carpet. Tom and I led the way, keeping an eye out for any trouble makers. The four of us came to attention at the bottom of the stairs, as six of our colleagues came down the stairs, proceeding Lissa and Christian, Dimitri immediately following, and the remaining four guards bringing up the rear. Dimitri made eye contact briefly before returning to scanning the crowd. Everyone cheered, and waved, Lissa and Christian smiling and waving back, looking very realxed, yet dignified. They stopped to talk to a few people, only for a few moments, before moving on and getting into a black sedan, me and Dimitri climbing in after them.

"Why, hello there," I said grinning, as I pulled Dimitri closer for a kiss. I'd missed him so much.

"Hey," Kaleo, a Hawaiian guardian in his mid-forties, called laughingly from the front of the car. He was in the passenger seat, and Iosif was driving. "You're still working."

"I'm just saying Aloha," I replied teasingly. I smiled at Dimitri. "Aloha, Comrade."

He laughed, put an arm around my shoulders, and kissed my temple. Lissa and Christian were sitting opposite us, Lissa snuggled into her husband's side, both of them looking perfectly content.

"So how was it?" I asked them. "You guys have fun?"

"It was amazing," Lissa sighed. "Absolutely incredible."

"Couldn't have gone better," Christian added. They then started to tell me about everything they'd seen, and visited. It sounded like a great trip. We arrived back at the palace before they'd gone through half of it, and after making sure they got upstairs safely, we arranged to meet for dinner in mine and Dimitri's apartment in a few hours.

"Thank you," Dimitri said as I handed him a cup of coffee. He'd just finished unpacking, and was relaxing on the sofa, his feet on the coffee table. I sat down next to him, and he put an arm around me, drinking his coffee. "I missed you, Roza."

"I've missed you too," I told him, snuggling closer. I was debating about whether or not to tell him about the clinic now, or after dinner. Dimitri decided for me.

"Are you going to tell me your master plan yet?"

I slowly sat up straight, and Dimitri did the same, putting down his coffee. I bit my lip, considering how to go about this. Sensing my unease, Dimitri clasped my hand, bring it to his lips.

"Come on," He said. "It can't be that crazy."

"It kind of is." I took a breath, before saying "Let's say that, hypothetically, it was possible for us to, oh I don't know, have a baby," Dimitri looked shocked, and a little upset. He opened his mouth to interrupt, but I continued quickly. "_Hypothetically_. Would you want to have one?"

"Rose," he started, looking devastated now, "You know that we can't – "

"Hypothetically," I repeated. "Just yes, or no."

"Rose – "

"Just yes or no!"

"Yes!" he burst out finally, that small admission looking like it cost him great effort. "If it were possible, I would _love_ to have a child, have lots of them, and I hate that we can't!" He got up, and started to pace the room. Spinning to face me, he asked "Why are you bringing this up? Why does it matter?"

"Have you ever heard of the Family Institute?" I asked quickly. I remained seated on the sofa. "It's in Georgia. It was set up five years ago by the MAAM."

Dimitri shook his head and sat back down slowly, looking at me confused. "What is that? Some kind of adoption agency?"

"No," I said slowly. "The night of the reception, I heard these two women talking about the fact that one of their friend's husband couldn't, well, get her pregnant, and they, well, they, uh, went to a sperm clinic."

"A sperm clinic," Dimitri repeated slowly. "A _moroi_ sperm clinic?" He looked flabbergasted. I nodded. "The moroi _have_ sperm clinics?"

"Just the one."

"The one in Georgia. The Family Institute." He sat back and rubbed his face with one hand. "And you're considering it." He sighed and looked exhausted. I wished I hadn't mentioned it until after dinner. "So, you'd get pregnant, with an unknown man's sperm?"

I shifted so that I was sitting cross-legged, facing him, and rested my cheek on the back of the sofa. "The baby would still be _ours_ though." Dimitri didn't look at me. "Have _your_ last name, _you'd_ sign the birth certificate, _we'd_ raise this child _together_. Don't you at least want to consider it?"

Dimitri turned his head to look at me. "I'm still not entirely comfortable with the fact that, well," He looked down, and sighed. "It'll be another man's baby. Not mine. What if I treat the child as such?"

"Oh, come on!" I said, springing up, crossing my arms. I wanted a child so, so badly. It had become an ache in my chest whenever I thought about it. "What if I got knocked up before I met you, huh? Would you shun the kid then?"

"Rose – " Dimitri had likewise stood up.

"What if you got someone else pregnant, you think that I wouldn't love that kid like my own?"

"Rose this is a lot to take in!" Dimitri started pacing again. "Ten minutes ago, I never even thought I could be a father!" He stopped, and looked at me dead on. "No, if either one of us was a parent before we met, then of course we would both love the other's child, but this is different!"

"How?" I asked angrily. "How is this any different? You just said you wanted kids!"

We just looked at one another for a long time, before Dimitri finally replied. "I suppose that it's not that different. But you can't just expect me to decide right away."

"Oh, right, wait here," I told him, as I rushed into our bedroom, grabbed some papers, and ran back to Dimitri. I handed them to him saying "The clinic sent me all this."

"You contacted them?"

Annoyed, I put my hands on hips. "You were gone for two weeks! You wanted me to bring this up with no information, with nothing to tell you?"

"I suppose not," he said, leafing through the information. He slowly sat back down, looking thoughtful as he read the first few pages. I sat down as well. After a few minutes, he looked back up. He looked like he was waging an internal battle.

"I can't just decide right away," Dimitri told me, still looking like he couldn't make up his mind. "Having a baby is a huge responsibility. I need more time."

"Take as much as you need," I said quickly. "I mean, I wasn't planning on doing this, if you agreed obviously, until after the wedding, which is six months away. Plus," I added, smiling slightly, "I'm only twenty-two. Not like my biological clock is ticking away."

That got me one of his half smiles, and Dimitri told me that he would consider going to the clinic. He spent the rest of the evening going over the stuff the clinic sent. We ended up cancelling dinner with Lissa and Christian, saying that we wanted some alone time. That was fine by them. I think they wanted some 'alone time' too. We didn't speak much for the rest of the night, but Dimitri did go on the website for the Family Institute. I really thought that he was coming around to the idea.

"Alright," Dimitri said suddenly. We both in the bathroom, getting ready for bed. I was nearly done brushing my teeth. "I've thought about it."

I stopped brushing my teeth and turned to face him, tooth-brush still in my mouth. "Really? You haven't even had a day!" I spat in the sink, cleaned my mouth, then turned to look at Dimitri again. "What happened? I thought it would be at least twenty-four hours _minimum_."

He shrugged. "There were pictures on the website. Happy families, and I kept picturing the two of us holding a baby, seeing his or her first steps, hearing their first words." Dimitri looked me right in the eye. "And I realised how badly I wanted that. Before I hadn't really _let_ myself want it because I thought that there was no chance, that we couldn't. But now we have the option." He took a step closer to me. "At first, I was maybe willing to go along with it, because it would make you happy, but," he took a deep breath, "But now I realise that I want it too." He took another step. "I want children. Whenever I see Mikhail with Celia I am so, so jealous, I can barely stand it." He put his hands on my shoulders. "Lets do this. Lets make a family."

I was speechless. Hell, I could barely breathe. "You're sure you've had enough time to think?" I asked him quietly. "You've only had a few hours."_Why are you questioning it? He wants to do this! Shut up!_

Dimitri smiled. "I was looking at the picture of us with Celia at her baptism. I want us to be _parents_. Not just godparents. I don't need anymore time."

I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him, heedless of the fact that I probably tasted like toothpaste. I was overjoyed. We were really going to have a baby. A child of our own.

"I take it you're happy," Dimitri laughed, when we came up for air.

"Very," I replied grinning. "But you know," I added slyly, "There's no reason we can't, oh I don't know, simulate the normal baby making process, even if that's not how we're going to have one."

Dimitri didn't say anything, he just smiled, scooped me up, and then took me into the bedroom. We finally said hello properly.


	4. Reassurance

He needed to talk to someone. He really needed some advice, but he was debating about whether or not the person he had in mind would be able to give him any. Or reassure him at all. In the end he decided to just get it off his chest, as it would probably help just to talk about it, even if his father ended up not giving him any words of wisdom. Although, as Rose would probably joke, the words of wisdom were more his department.

He'd dialed half of the number for the house, before he remembered that his father was in Paris on business. His mother had declined going along this time. Since they'd gotten married, his father worked over the phone a lot more, instead of travelling. His work had a lot to do with the stock market. He picked up on the third ring, and he sounded very sleepy.

"Dad, it's me."

"Dima," Dimitri heard Benedikt yawn, and what sounded like some sheets rustling as he sat up. "I didn't expect to hear from you so soon. How was Brazil? You are back from Brazil, aren't you?"

"Since yesterday. Were you asleep?" Dimitri asked, "What schedule are you on?"

Benedikt yawned again. "Human one. It's four o'clock in the morning here."

Dimitri grimaced as he realised his father probably hadn't gotten much rest. It was ten p.m. there. He was currently sitting at the island in the kitchen of his and Rose's apartment, clutching his 'morning' cup of coffee. Rose had left for work two hours ago. Dimitri had a scheduled training with several moroi who lived at Court, including Christian, at three, and had been doing some paper work that morning. "Sorry, I assumed that you'd be on a vampiric one. I wouldn't have called otherwise."

"Not to worry," Benedikt said replied. He sounded more awake now. "So what can I do for you?"

Dimitri hesitated before asking "Have you ever heard of the Family Insitute? It's located in Atlanta, Georgia."

"No, sorry never heard of it." He could practically picture his father shaking his head, as well as his confused expression. He heard him yawn again, and was considering telling him that he'd call back later. "Are you trying to find more information on it? Because I could probably make some calls."

"Thank you, but that's okay. I have access to all the information I need, it's just that Rose and I are going to make an appointment for it in a year or so, and I was wondering what you'd think." Dimitri took a sip of his coffee.

"Really?" Benedikt said, intrigued. "What exactly is the Family Institute? What does it do?" An exciting thought seized him. "It's not an adoption agency, is it?" It would be wonderful if his son and his girlfriend could have a baby. They were both great with kids, and would make good parents.

Once again Dimitri hesitated before speaking. "It's a moroi sperm clinic." All he could hear was silence on the other end of the phone. He grimaced again. Great, just great. His father probably thought that it was a terrible idea. "Dad, you still there?"

More silence, then "So Rose is going to get pregnant? You're going to have a baby together?" Benedikt sounded really excited. "Dima, that's fantastic! You'll be an amazing father, I know you will. Congratulations! Or is it too soon for crongratulations?"

Dimitri nearly laughed in relief. At least one family member was on board with the idea. He could practically hear Janine: _How exactly are you two going to balance your busy schedules, and raise a child at the same time? _There was a chance that his mother might take the same stance, or assume that Rose was going to retire. Karolina, he knew, would support them, as would Abe and his grandmother. God only knew how his other sisters were going to react. They might think that Rose cheated on him.

"You really think it's a good idea?" Dimitri asked. "You don't think it's strange, or insane?"

"Dima, I've known Rose since she was six. She is insane. I learned to just nod along a long time ago." Dimitri laughed at that. "But I also know that you two will make great parents. Is that why you're worried? You don't think you'll be a good father?"

"Well, no – " Dimitri began, but stopped, and then started again. "How did you know that I was worried about something?"

"Because you called me two weeks after we saw one another," Benedikt replied. "You never call so soon." That was true. They saw each other every December and August, and e-mailed twice or more times a week, but they only spoke over the phone maybe three or four times a year.

"It's just that I'm worried about how I'll treat the baby," Dimitri said, taking another sip of his coffee. "What if all I think when I see the child, is that another man is the biological father?"

"Dima, you know that old phrase? Any one can be father, but it takes someone special to be a dad?"

"Yeah, I know that one." Dimitri drank some more coffee. "So what your saying is, that this man will be the father, but I'll be the dad?"

"Precisely!"

Dimitri shook his head. "I think we've been hanging around Rose too long, because that sounds like 'Rose logic', and it actually made sense."

There was a pause before Benedikt said "Did you know that Sonya and Savva found a house? They move in next week."

"That's great, I thought they were never going to agree. Rose and I had a bet about how long it would take them to find one they _both_ like." Of course, everyone had had doubts about whether they would _ever_ agree on a house. Since Savva had moved to Baia in September, they'd looked at nearly every house on sale. Though Dimitri was slightly confused about the abrupt change of topic.

"Yes, it's a good house, four bedrooms, nice big back garden. Rurik's started begging for a tree house." Benedikt chuckled. "To be honest that sounds like a job for his uncles, cousin Paul, and aunt Rose, not his step-father. Remember when Savva tried to fix the plumbing?"

Dimitri laughed as well. Last Christmas, when he and Rose had been visiting, there had been a problem with the pipes in his mother's house. Pyotr, who's father was the town plumber, had already looked at them and said that they needed to wait for the hardware store to open to buy some supplies. Savva, not knowing this, and not knowing a thing about plumbing, said that he would take a look too. He ended up flooding the bathroom, and nearly destroyed the kitchen ceiling. Rose replastered the ceiling, while Dimitri, Pyotr and Saveliy, who was visiting Karolina, took care of the pipes. To make Savva feel better about it, and becasue he was a little _too _helpful, they kept sending him to the hardware store with Paul. It had taken them three days to fix the mess. No-one was ever, _ever_, going to forget the time Savva 'fixed' the plumbing. Or the loose step on the stairs. Or the skirting board in Paul's room. Or when he emptied the gutters of leaves. Savva with power tools was a frightening concept.

"Please tell me," Dimitri said, "That Sonya is not going to let him near a hammer? Or worse, an electric drill?"

"She's claiming that Rurik's too young for a tree house," Benedikt laughed. "But she might change her mind when you, Rose and Saveliy are here at the same time. Just finish before you leave. Or only have something not dangerous left to do."

Dimitri smiled and shook his head. He liked Savva, they all did, but there was no denying that he was the world's biggest clutz. He was a good school teacher, and he really should just stick with teaching five year olds how to write their names.

"So, since you didn't hear that they bought a house, I suppose you didn't hear that they're talking about marriage? Maybe having a baby?"

"Marriage?" Dimitri repeated, shocked. Considering that not many people around Baia got married, Dimitri had never even thought that his sister would. "It's been, what, two years now?"

"Well, Savva hasn't proposed yet, but they're talking about it." Benedikt paused for a moment. "You know if they do get married, Savva says that he wants to adopt Rurik. He's not the father, but - "

"He'll be the dad," Dimitri finished, smiling slightly. "I know what you're saying." And he knew why his father had changed the subject. "And it really doesn't bother you that we're going to a sprem clinic?" Dimitri downed the last dregs of his coffee.

"Not in the least," Benedikt told him. Dimitri felt reassured at that. "If you love that child, then as far as I'm concerned it's my grandchild. And don't worry about it, not treating the child like your own. It seems to me that you really _want_ to love the baby. You're not still having second thoughts are you?"

"I was never having second thoughts," Dimitri said, putting his mug in the dishwasher. "Rose wants to do this pretty badly, so I was willing for her, not to mention the fact that _I_ want a baby." He leaned against the sink.

"If you want a baby so badly, then why are you worried?"

"Just worried that I won't treat the child as I should, that's all."

"Dima," his father sounded amused now, "I think you'll be fine."

"Thanks Dad. Just don't say anything to Mom, or the others, okay? Not yet."

"I can do that," Benedikt replied. "Any idea about when you're going to do this?"

Dimitri shrugged and said, "Not until after the wedding at least." He glanced at the clock. "I should probably go, I think I'm robbing you of too much sleep."

Benedikt laughed again. "No, when you were four months old, and had colick, that's when you really robbed me of sleep. You and Rose have fun with that."

Dimitri laughed as well, and said good-bye to his father. Hanging up, he felt much better than before, and altogether reassured. The news about Sonya and Savva had been wonderful, and made him really realise that it didn't matter if he wasn't biologically related to the child. It would still be _his_ child. His and Rose's baby, to teach how to walk and talk, to ride a bike, to comfort after having a bad dream. He wanted to do much more research, of course. According to what the clinic sent over, Rose was at risk of having a multiple pregnancy, and those were always risky to both mother and children. If they were going to do this, then they were going to do this as safely as possible. Dimitri knew there was no way to talk Rose out of it. He didn't have a prayer. So, he was going to do all he could to ensure her safety. And to be honest, he really wanted to have that baby.


	5. Wedding no 4

"You just had to pick Hawaii, in May, didn't you?" Adrian drawled as he walked into the tent. He was wearing suit pants and a shirt, but no tie, and, despite his complaining about the heat, didn't look like he was sweating at all.

"Yes, yes I did. And you know why I picked Hawaii in May? It was just to annoy you Adrian," I shot back. I would be walking down the aisle in twenty minutes, was panicking that I was going to forget my vows, or trip, or it would start raining, and I did not need to hear Adrian whining about the heat! To be honest he should be used to the heat by now, it wasn't that bad, and we'd been here for six days, for crying out loud.

Adrian was scrutinising me, and I knew he wasn't checking out my gown, which was strapless, and hugged my torso, before flairing out slightly at the waist. Because of the heat, it was made of a light silk, and was a brilliant white. My hair was down and curled slightly, and came halfway between my shoulders and my mid-back. "Okay," Adrian said slowly, "I probably should have checked your aura before speaking. _Relax_ Little Dhampir."

I was sitting in front of the mirror and saw Sydney shoot her boyfriend a pointed look, before going back to fixing my veil and telling me to just breathe. Lissa, my matron-of-honour, had gone to find my father, and Mia to find Viktoria, my other bridesmaid. Because we only had seventy-two guests, I'd decided to only have two bridesmaids, and Dimitri was only having Christian as his best man, and Mikhail as a groomsman.

"Do we still need to remind her how to exhale and inhale?" Mia had come back, Viktoria behind her. Mia had on a baby-blue spagetti strap dress, that came down to her knees, and was made of a light guazy material. Viktoria was wearing the same dress as Lissa, a knee lenght strapless dark red dress, with an empire waist. Like Mia's, it was made of a light material, that I wasn't able to remember the name of right now.

"We were doing that when I left," Viktoria added smiling. She'd gone half an hour ago, to feed her seven month son, Yulian. She still wouldn't tell us who the father was. Probably a good idea, as Dimitri and Ben might go to prison for murder. She put her arms around me, and rested her chin on my shoulder. We looked at each other in the mirror. "Everything will be fine."

"It will Rose," Adrian told me. It was one of the rare moments where he used my first name. Mia, Sydney and Viktoria echoed him, and I took a deep breath. They were right. They were all right. Everything would be fine. I was not going to make a mess of this. I was going to walk down the aisle, and I was going to become Dimitri's wife. The thought of that made me slightly dizzy. Married to Dimitri. Though, like Lissa, I was going to keep my own last name.

"Thanks guys," I said, "I just never, and I mean _never_, imagined that I would be getting married. It's still hard to believe."

"Want me to pinch you?" Sydney offered wryly. I rolled my eyes and told her I was good. Lissa came back with my parents at that point.

"Come on Sage," Adrian said, offering Sydney his arm. "Shall we go take our seats?" She took the offered arm, and they led the way out, Mia giving me the thumbs up as she left. The tent opened onto a large garden overlooking the beach, where Dimitri was, and where all of our guests were seated under the marquee. I stood up so that my mom and dad could see me better. Abe smiled happily as he looked at me.

"Little girl, you look absolutely beautiful," He told me.

"You really do," Lissa agreed, sounding like she was going to cry. "You look unbelievable."

"Please don't start cyring," I said, "Because then there's a very good chance that it'll set _me_ off!" I looked at my mother. She was just staring at me, and I didn't think that Lissa and I would be the only ones crying. "Mom, you okay?"

She nodded, and said "You just look so beautiful."

"Oh come now, there can't be any tears!" said Abe jovially. "It'll ruin your make-up, and they haven't taken any pictures yet!"

That got us laughing, and then we went to take our positions. My mother to her seat, and Christian and Mikhial met Lissa and Viktoria at the entrance. A few minutes later, when we heard the start of the wedding march, a traditional hawaiian wedding song, I gripped Abe's hand so tightly that I was afraid I'd break something. He led me out, across the white sheet that we'd lain out on the garden as an aisle, and which Zoya had strewn with flowers, to where Dimitri was standing at the top, looking as handsome as ever, next to the Justice of the Peace. One hour later we were husband and wife. I managed not to forget my vows. I even managed to hold back my tears. It was the happiest day of my life.

* * *

The reception took place in the same garden. The hotel consisted of raised two roomed huts all along the beach, with a trail leading up to the garden, which then led to other facilities, like an indoor and outdoor pool, a nightclub, a few restaurants, not to mention access to the rest of the island.

"You want me to take her?" Mikhail asked Dimitri, who was holding a sleeping Celia. The two of them were standing with Christian, Adrian and Eddie next to the bar which was set up to one side. Rose was currently doing a lindy-hop with her father, while her mother talked with Olena, Benedikt and Karolina. Lissa had convinced Iosif, one of her guardians, to dance with her and Mia had disappeared long ago with one of Benedikt's nephews.

"It's okay, I don't mind," Dimitri told him. He really didn't mind. He loved holding his goddaughter. Adrian then downed the rest of his scotch before declaring that he was going to go dance with his girlfriend. Jill came over a few minutes later, dragging Eddie out to dance with her. That just left Dimitri, Christian, Mikhail and a sleeping eleven month old. Mikhail was convinced that Dimitri and Rose wanted to have kids of their own. They were always, _always_ available to baby-sit, and asked a lot of questions about childcare. That, and Sonya said she could see the desire in their auras. They were great with Celia, and Mikhail really wished that his friends could have children of their own. So that was why he and Sonya had decided to say something to them. Well actually, they'd drawn straws, and he'd lost.

Mikhail soon turned the conversation around to one of his brothers. His biological mother had renounced custody of him when he'd been a few days old. "Yeah," Mikhail was telling them. Mikhail figured that Dimitri wouldn't mind if he said this in front of Christian. "A moroi woman just dropped him off, and, well, then she just left. Handed him to the guardian at the gate, who couldn't do anything to stop her driving off because he was holding a baby in his arms."

"That's terrible," Dimitri said, outraged. Given how much he and Rose wanted a child, it was unfathomable to him as to how someone could abandon their baby. Celia started fussing at that point, so Mikhail took her, and quickly calmed her down.

"Yeah, I know," Mikhail agreed. "Mom saw Tony when we were vsiting my older brother and sisters. Their friends used to play with him at school. Anyway, it turned out that he was in my class when I eventually started, and summer after kindergarten she invited him to stay with us. Summer after that, she started the adoption process." Mikhail told the two of them, smiling at the memory. He was still really close to Tony. "And that's the story of how I got my twin brother who's three months younger than me." He rocked Celia gently on his shoulder, who'd gone back to sleep.

"You know," Mikhail whispered, "I'm only bringing this up, because well, I thought that you and Rose might want to, you know – "

"Adopt?" Christian finished. "That's not a bad idea. What do you think?"

"I think that it's something to consider," Dimitri said, "And something that Rose and I have already considered." Dimitri looked around, before beckoning the two of them towards the very back of the garden, away from the party, which was going full swing. The other two exchanged a glance, then followed, all of them coming to a halt just outside the tent that Rose had gotten ready in.

"So, are you guys going to adopt?" Christian whispered excitedly. "Come on already, make me an uncle!"

"We checked it out a couple of months ago," Dimitri said, equally as quietly. "And we were rejected."

"What?" Christian said loudly. Celia started to stir, and Mikhail sent him a reproachful look. "Sorry," Christian whispered. "I mean, what?" He said, much more quietly.

"They said that we were unsuitable," Dimitri told them grimly. "They only gave us very vague reasons. But I think that it was because of me." Rose had been trying very hard to convince that it wasn't his fault. They had only looked at adoption just in case there was something that prevented Rose from carrying a child, like all the blows she'd recieved to the stomach.

Christian's face hardened. He grew as angry as Rose, Lissa or Mikhail when someone started on Dimitri or Sonya. He had half a mind to call up that agency, and start yelling at someone.

"Can't you use another agency?" Mikhail asked.

"No, because you don't go through an agency. You go directly through Child Services at Court. We aren't really able to appeal to anyone else." Dimitri's lips quirked upwards in a small smile. "But we have another plan."

"What, steal a baby?" Christian asked.

"No," Dimitri said, glancing around again. Since Rose had told Lissa, he figured that he was allowed to tell his two best friends.

"Lissa already knows," he directed at Christian, "But nobody else does. Well, my father does, but that's it, so keep this quiet."

Mikhail and Christian were really intrigued now. "Know what?" Mikhail asked, Christian looking curious.

Dimitri lowered his voice. He and Rose didn't want anyone to know until after. "There's this clinic in Atlanta," he whispered, "A _sperm_ clinic."

His friends gaped at him. "A _moroi_ sperm clinic?" Christian clarified. Dimitri nodded. "The moroi _have_ sperm clinics?" He couldn't believe his ears. Neither could Mikhail. He'd never heard of a moroi sperm clinic, and he worked in records.

"Only one," Dimitri said, "It's called The Family Institute."

"The Family Institute?" Christian repeated with a snort. "Really?"

"So, you and Rose are going to a sperm clinic?" Mikhail said. "She's going to get pregnant?" Dimitri nodded. "Well, uh, congrats, I suppose, and if you need any help, Sonya and I are a phone call away."

"And I call dibs on godfather," Christian added.

"You two don't think it's strange?" Dimitri asked dryly. He could tell they were really shocked by this piece of information, but he was touched that they were making such an effort to hide it.

"Of course it's strange," Christian said, "But it's you and Rose. I mean, it's not like you two set the bar for 'normal'."

"He has a point," Mikhail added, smiling. "Besides, you guys will be great parents. So, my sincere congratulations, and good luck."

"When are planning on doing this?" Christian asked.

"In a year. We're going to tell everyone that we're going on a month long trip for our anniversary, but really we're going to Georgia to – "

"To knock up Rose," Christian interrupted. "So, you're telling me, that I've got to wait twenty-one months to become an uncle?"

Despite Christian's impatience, it was comforting, however, to know that they were on board.


	6. The Donor

"Okay, what about this one?" Dimitri called. He'd done so in russian. We'd basically stopped speaking to one another in english because we'd decided to teach the baby russian, and I was more or less fluent by now. Dimitri was currently sitting in bed, with his back against the headboard, looking at potential sperm donors. The clinic had sent over all their profiles. I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth. "Tall, dark blond hair, hazel eyes." I heard rustling sheets. "He has a degree in theatre studies, and is an actor."

I came out of the bathroom and got into bed curling up next to him, looking at the sheet. "Translation: Short for a moroi, mousy hair, did a twelve week course on acting, and is on unemployment benefits. And _I_ have a degree in history and in social and political sciences, doesn't mean I know what I'm talking about." Just after mine and Dimitri's wedding, Lissa, Sydney and I had sat our college finals, the two brains aceing everything, me just barely passing. Lissa'd only graduated last year because she'd had to defer her place at Lehigh. It's not possible apparently, to simultaneously sort out a chaotic nation, and attend college.

Dimitri sighed, and went onto the next one. "You know," he said, " If you keep this up, we'll run out of options very quick."

"I can't help it," I told him, putting my head on his shoulder, and reading the profile of donor MJ785. It was just a physical description, along with some other basic information, like personality, and some indicators of intelligence, like job, or schooling. "I just want this to be perfect. Explore all of our options."

"You've already vetoed over _half_," Dimitri said exhasperated, turning his head to look at me. "And they sent over three thousand! Roza, we not going to get it exactly right, we really should just make a decision." We'd been looking at these for the past two months, and we were running out of time. I could understand Dimitri's frustration. The appointment at the clinic was in a couple of weeks. At this rate, we were going to have to reschedule. And as much as I'd enjoyed it just being Dimitri and I, having our year of wedded bliss, I really couldn't wait for baby to make three. Or four. Since we were having IVF done, there was a strong possibility that I was going to have twins. Something Dimitri and I had been preparing for, for the last year.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Dimitri said sitting up suddenly. My cheek slipped off his shoulder, and I nearly fell over onto the pillow behind him. "A 'yes', a 'no', and a 'maybe' pile." He turned to face me head on, crossing his legs in one fluid motion. "Theatre man, yes, no, maybe?" He held up the sheet with 'Theater man's' profile.

"No," I told him immediately. "Definitely not."

The next one was a man with light brown hair, and blue eyes. We put that in the maybe pile. The same with a six nine blond guy, who Dimitri wouldn't let me put in the 'no' pile. We continued like that for another thirty minutes, the 'no' pile slightly bigger than the 'maybe' pile. The 'yes' pile was non-existent. At least we were getting somewhere. We still had a sizeable stack by the time we decided to call it quits, saying we'd look at the rest towmorrow.

Dimitri's shift ended earlier than mine did the next day, and by the time I got home, I'd found that he'd made the 'maybe' pile slightly larger.

"Hey! I thought we were supposed to do this together!" I flopped down onto the sofa next to him, nudging him with my shoulder.

"I didn't put any in the yes pile," He sighed, "But I wanted to." He added dryly. "We need to make this decision soon Rose. I know it's not really something you can rush, but we don't have much to go on in the first place. I know how much you want it to be just right, I do as well, but it's not going to be perfect."

"I know, I know," I moaned, letting him pull me to him. "This is just so huge a decision. We could pick a serial killer!"

Dimitri chuckled, and said "We're not going to pick a serial killer. We're going to choose someone we both like, someone who is exactly what we're looking for."

I sighed, sat up, and we started combing through the profiles again. Instead of discussing each of the profiles, as we'd been doing before, we just immediately put them in one of the piles. You wouldn't think that it would be tiring, just sorting out the pages, but by the time we went to bed, we were exhausted. We'd gotten through a lot, and since tomorrow was our day off, we could finish off, then we could begin round two. Sorting the 'maybe' pile into the 'yes' and 'no' piles. Ugh. This kid was work, and I wasn't even pregnant yet.

We ended up not needing to finish up reading all of the profiles the next day. We found one that was perfect. MK156. Seven foot exactly – which in reality meant we needed to take off about an inch. Guys always exaggerate – with dark brown hair and dark blue eyes. Since Ben had blue eyes, it would still confuse people as to who was the biological parent. Because I'd finally found a donor, Dimitri was perfectly willing to go along with it. That, and he was similar to a guy Dimitri had wanted to put in the 'yes' pile. I asked him if he wanted to maybe go and consider that donor again.

"If you're happy, then I'm happy," he said, "Besides, I'm not risking you changing your mind." I threw a pillow at him. He caught it, and threw it back before lunging at me, pinning me underneath him on the sofa.

"Why, hello there," I breathed, grinning at him. He brought his lips to mine. "Shouldn't we call the clinic? Tell them we picked one?" He didn't answer. He just brought me into the bedroom. Well, it's not like we couldn't call tomorrow.


	7. Insemnation, Implantation and Hormones

**A/N:- Hey everyone, just wanted to say thanks for all of the great reviews, I really appreciate the support :D**

**On an unrelated topic, did anyone see the ref. push Andrews over in the Ireland vs. Spain match? That was so funny! He went flying! But it wasn't so funny when Spain then got the ball... :(**

This was really happening. I couldn't believe this was happening. After a year and a half of research, and preparation, we were here. We'd flown in from Court yesterday, and now, here I was, sitting next to Dimitri in the small, square waiting room of the clinic. The walls were a soft beige colour, and had pictures of kids playing, and happy families everwhere. Those, and the royal blue chairs along two of the walls, made it feel more personable than your standard doctor's office. The waiting room doubled as the reception, and the wall opposite the door was just a long wooden reception desk. To the right of the desk, there was a door that I assumed led to the procedure rooms, and allowed people to go behind reception. To the left, there was a door marked bathrooms.

There was one other couple sitting opposite us – moroi, and royals judging by their clothes – and a single – judging by her lack of a wedding ring - moroi woman a little way along from them. I'd hazard a guess at her being royal too. Rich, at the very least. None of us were talking, and that, along with the waiting, was driving me insane. I was currently bouncing my knee up and down out of irritation. We'd checked in at the desk twenty minutes ago, and I really wanted to get this started.

"Stop," Dimitri said out of the corner of his mouth, putting his hand on my knee to stop the bouncing. I immediately started bouncing the other one. He put out his other hand. "Relax, Roza." Today was just the initial visit, so I could get a physical examination, and see if there were any problems the doctors back home may have missed. I'd already started the hormone treatments, started taking pre-natal vitamins four months ago, had a fertility test and had this special type of ultrasound back home. Today we were going to get the results. And the suspense was killing me.

"I can't," I grumbled. "I want to get a move on." I started tapping my feet. Dimitri pressed on my toes. My feet were close enough together, that he was able to catch them with one foot. I just stuck out my tongue at him.

At that moment, a nurse came out and called the moroi couple, who were in fact members of the Ozera family. They walked past us without making eye contact. I, on the other hand, were trying to see if they looked familiar.

"Were they at Lissa and Christian's wedding?" I asked Dimitri, once the door swung shut behind them. Christian had begrudgingly invited a lot of his extended family, but I was unsure as to whether or not I'd seen them.

"I don't know," Dimitri responded, releasing me once he realised that this new puzzle was going to keep me occupied enough to stop the irritating bouncing. "If they were, they probably would have made more of an effort to hide their faces. They wouldn't want this to get out. They didn't, so I don't think they recognised us. Of course, Lissa and Christian had over four hundred guests, didn't they? Hard to tell."

"Excuse me," the moroi woman piped up. Dimitri and I had been speaking in russian, and this woman spoke in russian as well. Though from her accent, you could tell that, like me, she was not a native speaker. "I don't mean to intrude, but, are you talking about Vasilisa's wedding to Christian Ozera?"

We glanced at each other. Dimitri told her that we were, and the woman got very excited. She started asking all these questions. What was Lissa's dress like, who designed it, what suit did Christian wear, how did the reception hall look, and on, and on. A year and a half later, and the queen's wedding was still big news. I tried to remember the last time there'd been a married monarch. I decided to just ask Lissa later.

"I take it that you're assigned to Court, or one of the guests?" the woman asked Dimitri during her onslaught of questions

"Uh, yeah the both of us are assigned to the Court," I told her, slightly annoyed that she assumed I wasn't a guardian. "For nearly six years now."

The woman's eyes widended at that, but she quickly recovered, and finally introduced herself as Christine Lazar. Before Dimitri and I could tell her who we were however, another nurse came out.

"Guardians Belikov and Hathaway."

Christine's eyes widended again, as she recognised our names. I was well known as both Tatiana's suspected murderer, and the queen's best friend. Dimitri was infamous for being the first known restored strigoi, and as he'd helped me find the real killer. We were fairly influential in dhampir matters as well, me being pretty active and inventive with the novice curriculum, and Dimitri steaming ahead with moroi combat training, and shaking up the field experience a bit. She was still gaping at us as we said goodbye, and followed the nurse through the door, down the hall and into a large, modern office. We were told to wait there for the doctor. We sat down in front of the desk nervously, standing a moment later as the doctor, a balding moroi man in his late forties, came in.

"Hello, you must be Rose and Dimitri," he said smiling, shaking our hands. "It's good to finally meet you in the flesh." This was Dr. Antonescu, the doctor who we'd been talking to for the last year. He was one of four who worked at the clinic. He was a really nice man, who'd been perfectly willing to answer any of our questions, no matter how trivial, or strange. He'd made sure that we perfectly understood everything to do with the procedure, and had hepled us choose a good hospital in case I ended up carrying more than two. Those pregnancies were just too risky, and the clinic at Court was no-where near equiped enough.

"Good flight?" he asked seating himself behind the desk, indicating that we shoud sit too. We told him it had been fine, and he made a bit more small talk, like how was the hotel, were we nervous, how was I feeling, before getting to my results.

"I'm very pleased to say that the results of your fertility test indicate very good ovarian function, ovulation is definitely occurring – of course you're twenty-four, so that was more or less a given - good hormone levels," he shuffled some pages, "However there seems to be some scarring on your uterus."

Dimitri and I looked at each other, slightly alarmed. In fights I'd been kicked in the stomach plenty of times, not to mention two years ago getting stabbed in the abdomen. I still snapped the bastard's neck, before staking him. Then I'd promptly passed out. "But that doesn't mean Rose can't pregnant, right?" Dimitri asked swiftly.

"Well, that just means that it might be a bit difficult for the embryos to implant," Dr. Antonescu said. He added quickly "As I've already told you, we generally only transfer two embyros, but this just means that I think we'll have to go for three."

We glanced at each other again. "What are the odds of me having triplets if we implant three?" I asked. I didn't want triplets. A long with the stress of three newborns, and a high-risk, the hospital we'd chosen was in Phoenix, Arizona.

"Given your test results, I don't think that it's very likely," he told us. "I think it's entirely possible that you'll conceive, but I just want to give you the best chance." He smiled. "Any more questions?" We shook our heads. Dr. Antonescu stood. "Now, Rose if you could just follow me, and Dimitri, if could you just follow Shannon so you can talk to our financial advisor, Louise. Or do you want to discuss all that together?"

I shrugged. It would save time if Dimitri talked to Louise while I was getting examined. So, Shannon led Dimitri down the hall, and I followed Dr. Antonescu into the examination room. Everything turned out fine, and he said that he'd see me tomorrow to harvest the eggs. I met Dimitri in the waiting room, which was empty, except for two young guys – donors probably – and then we went back to the hotel.

That night we both stayed awake for a long time, not able to sleep. We weren't able to say anything to each other either, we were too nervous for the next day. We lay next to one another, our hands just barely touching. Eventually, we drifted off to sleep.

The following day, I was even worse in the waiting room than the day before, though Dimitri decided to just let me bounce away, considering I was about to heavily sedated. He just held my hand, rubbing the back of it with his thumb, while whispering words of comfort. Then, it was time. I left Dimitri in the waiting room, with Louis L'Amour for company, and was led back into a little preparation room where I could get dressed. Then I was brought into the surgery. I was out within seconds.

I woke up, looking at a white ceiling, in a dimly lit room feeling very groggy. For a moment I was confused about where I was, but then quickly remembered. The procedure. The eggs.

"Good-morning sunshine."

I felt a grin spread across my face. "Hey, Comrade." My voice sounded a bit hoarse. "Fancy meeting you here."

I heard him get up, and I turned my head in the direction of his voice. Dimitri was sitting in a chair next to my bed, smiling happily, his book in his hand. It looked like he'd nearly finished it. He moved to sit on the bed, before reaching over and brushing some hair from my face.

"The doctor said that everything went great," Dimitri told me. "How do you feel? Do you want me get you anything? Call a nurse?"

I asked for some water, and he went to get it, returning a few minutes later with Dr. Antonescu and a nurse. They did some checks, and assured me that the procedure had gone perfectly, and that he was hopeful that we would have several viable embryos in a few days.

"How long have been out?" I asked. I still felt a little out of it.

"Four hours," the Doc. said, "You seem to have recovered, but I'd still like to keep you here for at least another hour, just until the sedative completely wears off."

I wanted to protest that, but the fog enveloping my brain agreed with the doctor. After thanking him and the nurse, Dimitri and I where left alone.

"Whatever they gave me," I said lying back down, "Must have been pretty damn strong. Oh, God I hope this works."

"Me too," Dimitri said smiling. "I think it will." He leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to my lips. "Are you feeling any better now?"

I was a bit, but we still stayed in the clinic for another little while, until the doctor gave me the all clear. Dimitri drove us back to the hotel in the rental car, the both of us very excited. We would be going back to the clinic in five days to implant the embryos. Until then we passed the time exploring Atlanta. Turns out there was a lot of really cool clubs, and one cowboy bar that Dimitri dragged me too. Got to love the south. Even though Dimitri was the one who wanted to go, I still couldn't get him on the dance floor, until I threatened to tell Mikhail and Christian about his weddings to Karolina's dolls. That sure got him moving.

Finally, it was time to return to the clinic. We didn't have to wait as long in the waiting room this time, being shown to the doctor's office nearly immediately. He was already there when the nurse opened the door.

"I have some great news," he said, indicating that we should sit down. "We were able to remove a total of eleven eggs, and out of those seven have become viable embryos."

"Seven?" I repeated, stunned. Seven embryos. Seven chances to have a baby. I glanced at Dimitri, who was looking more composed than me. That was more than either of us expected. I thought there would be about four at most.

"Yes," Dr. Antonescu replied, smiling. "Now, I believe you've both expressed a desire to freeze any extra embryos? Is that still what you want to do?"

"So, three of them will be implanted, and the rest will be frozen," Dimitri clarified, "And then, in a few years, we can have another baby?" That was an exciting thought. I'd always wanted siblings growing up, and been frequently jealous of Lissa and Andre's relationship. Dimitri of course, had a fantastic relationship with his sisters, so the thought of giving our baby a sibling was exciting for both of us.

Dr. Antonescu nodded, and we decided to make plans for a return trip in a few years. After a few more questions, like what I was allowed to so after the procedure – which wasn't much - I was once more led into the preparation room, and then into the procedure room. I wasn't knocked out this time, and the procedure only took fifteen minutes. Then I was wheeled into the recovery room, and told that I wasn't allowed to get up for another hour. Me, not moving, for an hour. Ugh. This kid better appreciate what I'm going through to bring him or her into the world. A few minutes later, Dimitri came in. He had a large envelope in his hand.

"Are you okay?" he asked, leaning down to kiss me. I told him that I was fine, but I was bored already. He just laughed, and said that he had something to maybe alleviate my boredom. It was pictures of the embryos.

"Okay, so those three," Dimitri said, pointing to three of the clearest looking ones, "Are the ones that were implanted, because they were the best quality."

"Is it weird that I think they're kind of cute?" I asked, cocking my head to one side. I really wanted ot get up, but had another thirty minutes left. On the other hand, I was terrified of doing anything detrimental to the embryos, preventing them form turning into a baby.

"Just a little Roza," Dimitri replied smiling. "Considering that they're currently just a ball of cells."

Dimitri did his very best to distract me for the next thirty minutes, and tried to keep me calm. "Whether you're stressed or not, won't have any effect on the outcome," he told me. "What will happen, will happen. We can't change it, so just relax. No point in worrying yourself."

"Que sera, sera," I said rolling my eyes. "More 'Zen Master Wisdom'. What would I do without you?"

"Pull your hair out in frustration," he responded dryly. He twisted a lock around his fingers, and smiled. "And that would be such a waste." He then kissed me, and when we pulled apart, I really and truly lamented, for the first time, the fact that we couldn't have sex until we had confirmation of a fetal heart beat. And that was six weeks away.

Finally, we were able to leave, getting confirmation of our appointment in two weeks for the pregnancy test. As Dimitri drove us back to the hotel, I stared glumly at the box in my hand. It contained fourteen syringes and vials of progesterone that Dimitri was going to have to inject me with, every day for the next two weeks, to aid implantation. In the buttocks. Oh, the joys of child bearing.

"This was your idea," Dimitri laughed, as he pulled into the garage of the hotel. He knew of my adversion to medical needles. Also, it was kind of obvious, considering I was pouting at the box. "You've known about this part for months."

"Quiet you," I grumbled getting out of the car, before Dimitri could get my door for me. "The next two weeks are not going to be easy. For either of us. You're injecting me with hormones, don't you think that's going to make a bit more high-maintainance than normal?"

"You're not high-maintainance," Dimitri said, pushing the button for the elevator

"Oh, yeah? What am I then?"

Dimitri threw an arm around me, as we got inside. "Fun, exciting, passionate." He smiled then, one of those full smiles, that were still so rare for him. "You're everything that I want."

"Smart man," I said happily, snuggling into his side. Maybe the next two would be manageable after all.

I was wrong. The next two weeks were not manageable. The next two weeks, were _torture_. All I could do, all day long was sit on the sofa, or lie on the bed. Dimitri tried to get me to take a walk with him a few times, but I was panicking that maybe the embryos would fall out. Now, I knew that that was completely and utterly impossible, had looked up enough websites, asked the doctor, but it made me feel better to just do nothing. Well, not _better_, but not guilty that I was hurting the baby. I blamed the hormones. Once, Dimitri did manage to persuade me to come down to the restuarant, instead of ordering room sercive. That was enough for me. Dimitri, I think, had made the decision to just humour me, and do everything to keep me calm, pretty early on. He had the patience of a saint.

Now, while I was content that I wasn't doing anything to harm my chances of actually conceiving, that didn't mean that I wasn't going stir crazy. But I couldn't bring myself to do anything more active. Thankfully, I was managing to keep from taking my frustration out on Dimitri – a.k.a, my cell mate. Because if I wasn't going anywhere, he'd decided – at his own personal risk - to keep me company. It was one of those times where I had to marvel at how I got so lucky. Not many guys would say no to the chance of getting away from a raging hormonal psychopath, despite said psychopath repeatedly encouraging them to go do whatever they wanted, and not be cooped up in a hotel room.

Eventually, finally, we went back to the clinic for the pregnancy test. The nurse, Shannon, took some of my blood, and then we waited for the test results. Dr. Antonescu told us thirty minutes later.

"Congratulations," he said smiling, "You are, I am very pleased to say, pregnant." My hand flew to Dimitri's. He squeezed back tightly. Pregnant. I was _pregnant_. I felt dazed. It had worked. We were going to have a baby!

"I've already gotten in contact with the clinic at Court," he was telling us, "And you have your first ultrasound this day next month." He smiled again. "Congratulations," He said again, shaking our hands as we stood up. "I hope that everything goes well for you both, and don't hesitate to contact me if need anymore information."

We thanked him, and left the clinic in a daze. Pregnant. I was pregnant. In nine months, I was going to have our child in my arms. I thought that my heart might explode from joy.

However once Dimitri closed the door of our hotel room behind us, I burst into tears.

"Roza." Dimitri pulled me to him, stroking my hair, and I controlled my sobbing just long enough to say that I was fine, and it was probably just the hormones.

"I'm happy," I mumbled through my tears, into his T-shirt. "I'm just so, so happy. I never imagined that I would ever have a baby, and now I'm pregnant." I pulled back to look at him. "We're going to be parents."

Dimitri didn't say anything. He just held me while I tried to get some composure over myself. He didn't need to say anything. He understood.


	8. Heartbeat

**A/N:- Just like to say thank you to Orlissa92, and her series 'Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That', specifically chap 411: Dough, for the inspiration for the second half (after the page break) of this chapter. And thank you Orlissa for letting me use it :D**

Today was the day. The day that Dimitri and I would get to hear our child's heartbeat for the first time. See and hear actual, tangible proof of the fact that we were going to have a baby. We were also going to see how many of the embryos had implanted. Our friends were taking bets. We hadn't meant to tell anyone, except Lissa, Christian and Mikhail, who'd told Sonya, until I was twelve weeks along, but word had gotten around.

Now, I'd had to tell Hans and Pawel, captain of the Royal Guard, so my duties weren't too strenuous. That, and the fact that I wasn't allowed to spar with anyone, as well as the fact that I kept rushing to the bathroom to throw up, resulted in the entire guard figuring it out. Not to mention that whilst visiting with Sydney, Adrian had seen it in my aura. Or he'd seen the baby's aura. Either way, he knew. Which meant that Jill knew, and she naturally told Eddie, who told Mia. At least that was it. Everyone who knew had been sworn to silence.

"Quintuplets," Chrsitian said with a smirk, leaning against the sink in the kitchen of mine and Dimitri's apartment, next to Eddie. I was sitting at the island with Lissa on one side and Sonya on the other. Celia, who'd turned two yesterday, was sitting on Mia's lap, who was sitting on one end of the island. Because it was the middle of June, we were all eating ice-pops. Dimitri was in the sitting room with Mikhail and Jill, going over some lesson plans for the next day. "Definitely quintuplets."

"Nah," Adrian siad lazily. He was sitting on the counter a little was along from the guys, Sydney leaning against the fridge next to him. Like everyone else present, they were also eating ice-pops. "Sextuplets. Three sets of identical twins."

"I agree with sextuplets, but I think that only two of the embryos implanted, and you guys are going to have two sets of identical triplets." That was Eddie. Everyone, independent of one another, had decided to come over and wish us luck. Or in some peoples' cases, freak me out. Dimitri had better hurry up in there.

"The odds of having identical triplets is somwhere in the region of one in two million," Sydney informed us. Thank God for that girl's encyclopedia of a brain. "I'm going to vote for fraternal triplets." I take it back.

"The doctor said that it was unlikely that I'd have triplets," I told everyone grumpily. Part of it was hormones, part of it was annoyance at my friends' predictions. They'd been doing it for the past month. "Scarring on my uterus apparently."

"Leave her alone," Lissa sighed. She knew how fed up I was getting. Plus, she'd already seen a couple of emotional outbursts, and I think she was keen to avoid another one.

"Yeah," Mia piped up, grinning mischieviously. "She's clearly going to have quads. Only one of the embryos split."

"You guys better hope that I'm not going to have that many, because you're all going to have to babysit!" I turned my head towards the sitting room. "Dimitri!"

"Nearly done!" he called back. "Don't worry, the appointment's not for another thirty minutes."

"Go early," Sonya laughed. "Before your wife murders someone."

There was a pause, and I could imagine Dimitri's eye roll. "Stop making predictions," he said wearily, coming into the kitchen, Mikahil and Jill following, the both of them grinning. "Because I'm not pulling her off any of you," he added with a hint of a smile.

I decided not to respond to that, and just pleaded with Dimitri to leave _now_. The clinic was only a ten minute walk, but the thought of having multiples was making me panic.

"Whatever happened to moral support?" I asked. "And you people call yourselves my friends. Why did you all come over anyway?"

Jill and Mikhail had needed to talk to Dimitri, their significant others coming for the visit. But Adrian and Sydney had no reason to be here, nor had Mia, and I knew for a fact that Lissa and Christian had rescheduled a lunch with Jonathan Dashkov.

"You guys are having a baby!" Mia exclaimed, as though it was obvoius, and like she was a little insulted. "We're excited for you! You know, two dhampirs starting a family, and you're our _friends_. We're just happy for you."

"Despite the teasing, we really are," Adrian pointed out. "Out of all of us, we never really pegged you two as prospective parents. No offence," he added.

"Yeah, I mean this is just insane," Eddie added. "A _baby_. You guys are having a _baby_. It's still trying to wrap my head around it. No offence either."

"None taken," Dimitri told him. "But please, just keep your predictions to yourselves."

"And thank you," I added.

"Well I think," Jill started. Dimitri and I looked pointedly at her. "That you two are going to make great parents."

"_Thank you_." I looked around the room. "Now _that's_ support."

"Well she's right," Sonya said smiling, Lissa nodding along. "You two _will_ be great parents." Coming from someone who had a child, that meant a lot. And after everyone started echoeing that statement, I got a little teary-eyed. Damn hormones. Mercifully, I didn't start crying, and we left soon after that. Everyone said they were going to wait there for us, and Mikhail instucted us to get a DVD. Their support was really touching. Though, considering how we'd all banded together to support Mikhail and Sonya when she was pregnant with Celia, it shouldn't really be a surprise. Adrian called it our 'Muskateer Mentality'. You know, one for all, and all for one.

We met Kaleo and Tom just outside the palace. From the looks of things, they'd just come back from a run.

"Good luck," Kaleo said as we passed them.

"You better show us the pictures," Tom added grinning.

We didn't stop for very long, but we told them we would, and then we went on our way. We were a little behind time, so we had literally just sat down, when we were called to go in to the examination room. Which was a good thing, as we'd both been getting steadily more, and more nervous as we walked.

I hoped up on the bed, lay down and Dr. James told me to pull up my shirt to expose my still flat stomach. She was a fairly young woman, not much older than Dimitri. She was also the only OB/GYN in the Court.

"This is going to be cold," she told me. She then squeezed some gel onto my stomach causing me to shudder.

Dimitri was sitting next to the exam table holding my hand. He smiled when I said "She wasn't kidding about that gel."

Dr. James smiled too, before starting to move the wand for the ultrasound machine over my stomach. She moved the screen so we could see as well. We couldn't see anything, or hear anything for a few seconds. Then we heard the most wonderful sound. Our baby's heartbeat. I looked round at Dimitri who was staring, frozen, at the screen, his mouth slightly open. His eyes looked a little too bright. He moved my hand, so that he held it with both of his, and he rested his chin on our fingers. He was still staring at the screen.

"And there's your baby," Dr. James said smiling, pointing to a tiny speck on the screen. I had to blink back tears. Your baby. _Our_ baby. I didn't miss the fact that it seemed like only one of the embryos had implanted. I could hardly believe that this was real. I was so happy that I felt like I could sprout wings. We were really having a baby. "Nice, strong heartbeat, normal size for the sixth week."

"So, everything's healthy?" I asked the doctor. Dimitri didn't seem capable of speech right now.

"It's still early, but things are looking promising," she replied.

I asked her where exactly was the baby, and she pointed to the tiny speck again to the left of the screen. I could just make it out. "There's the baby." She moved the wand a little to the right, and started smiling again. She pushed a button on the screen, causing it to freeze. "And there's your other baby."

"Other baby?" I repeated weakly. "As in, _twins_?" Dimitri tightened his hold on my hand, and brought it to his lips.

"There's two?" he asked, sounding like he could not believe his ears. "You're sure?"

"Positive," Dr. James said, wiping the gel off my stomach. "Both of them have good heartbeats, and are good sizes. It's hard to tell whether they're fraternal of not, but we can test that when we do the amniocentesis in your third trimester." She smiled again. "I'll go see about getting that DVD and some pictures, and I'll book your next ultrasound while I'm at it." She left us alone saying she'd be back in a minute.

I pulled my shirt down, and sat up. Dimitri had frozen again.

"Comrade, you okay?" He nodded. He was still holding my hand, and was staring at the screen.

"It's just, I can't believe, that's," he took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose, with his eyes closed, fighting back tears, before continuing. "That's our babies." He laughed. "_Those_ are our children." He pressed his lips to mine. "I think that it's really just hit me. We're going to have children. I knew we were going to have a baby, but," he shook his head. "We're going to have a baby." I laughed as well as he kissed me again.

"What, the morning sickness didn't give it away?"

Dimitri smiled, that full smile that I adored. "Roza," he breathed, "We're going to have a baby. We're going to have twins!"

Yeah, we really were. It was absolutely unbelievable, incredible, astounding. We were having a baby. This was one of the greatest moments of my life. and I was so, so glad that I got to share it with Dimitri. I don't remember ever being happier, than that moment.

* * *

They say that when you're pregnant, all of your hormones go into overdrive. They're not wrong. You burst into tears for no reason, you get angry over the tiniest things, things that really aren't that funny are suddenly hilarious and, of course, you're horny as hell. And if you haven't had sex in, say for example, six weeks, that just makes it worse. What made it really bad, was what Dimitri was currently doing.

Oh, he wasn't doing anything overtly sexual. In fact he was doing something that I'd seen him do plently of times before. He was kneading bread. I knew he could bake. He made this bread twice a week, the special russian black bread that we both devoured every time we visited his family. Not to mention the fact that when he made it the entire loaf only lasted – barely – for lunch.

I was currently leaning in the doorway of the kitchen watching him, as he was worked on the dark-coloured dough, our friends having left an hour ago, after we watched the DVD. Lissa had been in tears. Now don't get me wrong. I love watching Dimitri bake. I normally did, but there was just something about it today, that, well. The bread wasn't the only thing in this kitchen that was mouth-watering. When he realised I was there, Dimitri turned to look at me, smiling, flour on the end of his nose, and a bit on his left cheek and forehead.

"Can I help you?" he asked, smiling a bit more widely. I unbottoned the top button of my blouse.

"What did the doctor say about us having sex again?"

"That we should wait for confirmation of a foetal heartbeat." He glanced at my blouse.

"Right. And what did we get today?" I undid another button.

Dimitri smiled more widely, and a bit cheekily. "Confirmation of _two_ foetal heartbeats."

I undid a third button, and started walking towards him. He put his flour-covered hands on my waist, and I threw my arms around his neck as his lips came crashing down on mine. "Then why are we still in the kitchen?" I asked breathlessly, once we resurfaced.

"I have no idea," he said, picking me up so that my legs wrapped around his waist, carrying me, whilst kissing me, to the bedroom. He took care of the rest of the buttons before we got there, my blouse lying discarded on the floor of the sitting room. Next to my bra, and his T-shirt. It had been a long six weeks. But that day more than made up for it.


	9. Abe and Janine

You're supposed to be happy telling your mother that you're pregnant. You should be smiling, and laughing, and expecting her to be thrilled to be a grandmother. The thought of telling your mother that you're pregnant, should not fill you with dread. You should not be expecting condemnation, and disapproval. And yet, that was what I was expecting. My mother had handed me over to the academy when I was a few months old. She'd lived and traveled with her charge, as she does now, and wasn't able to raise a child. Granted, I lived with my husband inside the wards of Court, but I was still around my charge almost twenty-four/seven just like her. I had meetings, and trainings, and Dimitri's schedule wasn't any better. So, no. I wasn't looking forward to what my mother was going to say. In fact, I was panicking. I blamed the hormones.

"Why can't we just invite them to the babies' graduation?" I asked Dimitri desperately. "Think of the money they'd save on birthday and Christmas presents!" We were sitting in a little café in the small mall at Court, waiting for my parents. Abe had been here for a couple weeks, and a couple of days ago Lord and Lady Szelsky had – randomly as usual – decided that they wanted to visit Court, hence bringing my mother. They arrived today, and Abe was walking her from the guest dorms. Today I was twelve weeks exactly, and had been planning on telling Abe face to face – him I could handle – but had been going to tell my mom over the phone. It seemed easier to me.

Dimitri put his hand over mine on the table, and said reassuringly, "Just calm down, Roza. Besides," he added, "Abe will just find out anyway."

"How are you not worried about what they'll say? Especially my mother?"

"Oh, I am," he told me, "I'm also worried about my side of the family. But there's not much they can do. If any of them are upset now, you know that they'll get over it quickly. They'll be happy for us."

"Eventually," I said.

"Eventually," Dimitri agreed. He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. "But the point is, they will get over it. You never know, we might be surprised."

I sighed, and looked at the door, to see my parents entering the café, talking as they came. "Oh, God here they come." Dimitri made no response, just smiled, and stood to greet them.

"Hi," I said, giving my mother a one armed hug, which she returned, before everyone sat down. We spent a few minutes catching up, before a waiter came over to take our lunch orders. After he left, my mother regarded me shrewdly.

"What have you done?" she asked slowly.

"Why do you assume that I've done something?" I responded innocently.

Abe snorted. "It's fairly obvious, what with your 'please don't kill me face'." Dimitri chuckled at that. I gave him a sharp look.

"Fine then chuckles, _you_ tell them."

"Okay," Dimitri said, a little nervously, as he turned to my parents. Who looked really suspicious now. "Well, I, uh, I don't suppose either of you have ever heard of the Family Institute?"

My mom said "no" at the same time my dad said "yes". Well that figured. Old Man knew everything. My mom turned to look at him. "You have? What is it?" But Abe was looking from me, to Dimitri, and didn't answer her.

"Have you two been there already?" He asked, eyes narrowed. We nodded. "But that would mean you're – " He looked at me for confirmation. I nodded. Dimitri and I then had the privelage of seeing a-once-in-a-life-time sight: Abe Mazur, completely flabbergasted, and caught totally off guard. His jaw dropped, and he just stared, as though he couldn't believe his ears.

"Been where?" my mom asked, not liking being left out of the loop. "What is this place?"

"It's a moroi sperm clinic," Dimitri said in a rush. My mother looked confused at first, then she understood and looked as shocked as Abe.

"So you're..." she trailed off, glancing at my stomach. I wasn't showing yet, but I had the tiniest little bump just below my belly button. Dimitri loved it, thinking it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

"I'm pregnant," I told my parents. I was waiting for an explosion. "Twelve weeks exactly." At that moment our food came, something my parents didn't seem to register. "Are you guys okay?"

"What? Yes, yes of course, this is fantastic news!" my father exclaimed, coming to life. He started smiling. "It's wonderful, if a bit unexpected. Right Janine?"

"Absolutely," my mother agreed, nodding. "Given your relationship, I never exactly thought that you'd have children. I never imagined that I would be a grandmother either." She started grinning as that realisation seized her, and turned to Abe. "We're going to be grandparents!" She stood up to hug me. "Oh, Rose this is amazing! You'll be a wonderful mother."

Abe shook Dimitri's hand, and when my mother released me, she moved to hug Dimitri, Abe hugging me, and placing a kiss on my forehead. They must really be happy, not to mention in shock. It's not like they were the most cuddly people in the world. Once we all sat down again, our jubilation catching the attention of some other patrons, Abe proposed a toast.

"To Rose, Dimitri and the new baby – "

"And his or her brother or sister," I interupted. My mother looked even happier.

"Twins!" she said.

"To Rose, Dimitri and the new bab_ies_," Abe corrected himself laughing, "Congratulations, you will both be fantastic parents. You enjoy the mood swings," he added to Dimitri.

"Hear, hear," I giggled, as we clinked our teas and coffees. This was great! Not only were my parents on board, they were thrilled for us! Dimitri was right, I suppose. People really can surprise you.

"So what are going to do for child care?" my mother asked, as she tucked into her salad. "I know that the day-care here is supposed to be very good, or are you going to hire a nanny?" Figures she'd be so practical.

"We've been discussing it, but we haven't really decided yet," I told her. I started laughing. "I can't believe you two are actually going along with this. You don't think it's weird?"

My parents glanced at each other. "What do you two do, that isn't weird?" Abe asked pointedly. Okay, they may have had a point.

"And you're not worried about how we'll balance work, or anything?" I directed that at my mother.

"Rose," my mother said, a wry smile on her face. "It's not like this an unplanned pregnancy. Admitedly, it will probably be difficult, I know how dedicated you both are, but if you both think you can manage it, then you both have our complete support. And any help you might need."

I was speechless. That was one of the nicest things I'd ever heard my mother say. The four of us got on with lunch, talking a little bit more about the babies. When did we go, how long had we been thinking about this, did we have any names, did we know if they were boys or girls yet, and other questions to do with pregnancy. I was on cloud nine. As I've said before, when you're pregnant, all your hormones go into overdrive. So it was really no surprise, that I had to fight off tears of joy for the rest of the meal. Damn hormones. Oh, well. One set of grandparents down, one to go. I hope telling Olena goes as well as telling my parents. At least we knew that Ben would be happy. Dimitri had hinted that his mother might expect me to leave work, and that was just something that I could never do. Olena was one of the sweetest women on the planet, it can't go that bad. Can it?


	10. Olena and Benedikt

**A/N:- Just in case anyone didn't know, I went back and tweaked the previous chapter slightly, because, well, I went back and realised I wasn't 100% happy with it :(. Oh, well. At least I am now :). More or less :P**

You should be happy to tell your mother that your wife is pregnant. It should be a joyous occasion, not one that gives you a resigned feeling. You shouldn't be thinking that you should just get it over with, rip off the band-aid, so to speak, because your mother will just make assumptions, ones that you _know_ are not going to be fulfilled, because it just doesn't sit well with either of you. Now Dimitri hadn't explicitly said that his mother would expect me to leave work, probably just in case he was wrong, but that was the impression I was getting. Of course, he wasn't dreading the big reveal, like I had been with _my_ parents, but something told me he was expecting an argument. Granted, we thought that my mother wouldn't think it a good idea to have kids at all, but she was already buying onesies. His might surprise us too.

I was currently sitting on the sofa with my laptop, attempting to finish a propsal I wanted to make to the Guardian Council. Dimitri had just left to meet Mikhail at the garages, so they could go pick up his side of the family, who were visiting for Dimitri's thirty-first birthday. He would be gone for at least three hours, so that left me plenty of time to finish my proposal for the novice curriculum – I wanted to introduce something like a 'Carreers Day' for the sixth graders, where they shadowed a guardian from their school for a few hours. But, of course, instead of finishing my report – which no-one was expecting, so it's not like I had a deadline – I spent those few hours worrying about what Olena was going to say. Or, well think. I had a feeling that even if she didn't approve of my decision not to leave the guardians, she might not say anything. That being said, she really was one of the sweetest women I knew, so I was convinced that this couldn't go as badly as Dimitri was predicting.

When I'd been panicking about my parents, I'd been viewing my mother's reaction as a worst case scenario, but with Dimitri, it was more of a resignation. It was a sure thing: Olena was not going to like the fact that I was not going to retire. But, as Dimitri pointed out when we were telling my parents, everyone who's not happy, will get over it. Eventually. I'd been left alone with those unhappy musings for about an hour, tyring to simultaneously write up my report, when I heard the front door open, and Fane, a member of the Royal Guard, and one of our closest neighbours, walked in.

"Don't mind me, just need some milk," he called, waving a jug, as he strode into the kitchen. When he got it however, instead of leaving, he came into the sitting room, put his half-full jug on the coffe table, and sat on the sofa where I was sitting cross-legged, and looked expectant. He was an average sized, stocky twenty-eight year old, newest member of the guard, with hair blonder than Lissa's, and the thickest romanian accent I have ever heard. And I grew up with Emil.

"What?" I asked, when he did nothing more than look at me.

"Well let me see it," he said, as though it was obvious.

"See what?"

"The babies!" Fane said that, as though I really should have known.

"You saw the latest ultrasound yesterday," I told him, "I'll have nothing more recent until next week. Patience man, patience."

"I don't mean that," he said rolling his eyes, "Let's see the baby bump!"

"What?" I asked, in disbelief, "Why on earth would you want to see that? I'm not even showing yet."

"Because you showed Iosif and Harry, and they said it was cute."

"Okay, first of all," I said, shifting my postion slightly, "Those two have never said the word 'cute' in their lives. It's doubtful they even know what it means. Second of all, they walked in on me changing. I purposefully showed them nothing. And thirdly, why are you guys gossiping about my stomach?"

He shrugged. "Because I don't think any Royal Guard has ever had a baby. At least not one that has lived with them. I'm not even sure there's been a woman on the guard for at least sixty yeats. Miracle of life, and all that. You are _growing people_! Let us celebrate with you! Now lets see." He looked expectant again. I sighed, and pulled up my T-shirt, to reveal a tiny baby bump, only marginally bigger than it was three weeks ago.

"Happy?" I asked, pulling it down again.

Fane thought about it. "Fairly happy, yes. Can I feel them kick?"

"I felt them moving yesterday," I told him grinning. It had been an momentous occasion, one that had me laughing with joy. "But you won't be able to feel them on the outside for another few weeks. Sorry."

Fane was slightly dissappointed. We talked a bit more after that. Did we know the genders, when was my due date exactly, were they identical. We also discussed security for Lissa's upcoming trip to Alder Academy next month. Having him there really helped pass the time, and by the time he left, I only had about thirty minutes left to make myself worry about what the Belikovs were going to say. Ben, I knew, would be thrilled.

Finally, I got a text from Dimitri, saying that they had just pulled in at the garages, and they would be over in half an hour, once everyone was settled into the guest dorms. Christian came down a few minutes after that.

"So still worried about the mother-in-law?" Christian asked, sitting down in the armchair nearest the door. "When do they get here anyway?"

"I'm okay," I told him, putting away my laptop. "Dimitri hasn't really said anything, or warned me, so if his mom's not going to be happy, then I don't really think that I should worry too much." I shrugged. "Can't be that bad. And," I looked at my watch, "About twenty-five minutes or so."

"She can't really think that you'd leave work right, I mean has she met you?"

"I don't know," I answered, "Dimitri hasn't really said anything, so either it won't be terrible, or he just doesn't want to worry me. He really hasn't said anything to you?"

"I've just been picking up the same vibes as you," Christian responded shrugging. "Anyway, I only came down, because Lissa's got to meet with the Taurus prince, and can't make dinner. She'd tell you herself, but she's has to make some preparations for the meeting."

"How bad?" Upon closer inspection, Christian looked a bit tired, and disgust laced the word 'Taurus'.

His face turned slightly grim. "Remember the age decree six years ago? You know how Tatiana only approved that to slow down the pro-compulsion faction?" How could I forget. "Well, looks like he's trying to make some progress on that. Lissa wants to nip this in the bud as soon as she can, and that unfrotunately means cancelling diner. Oh, and I'd keep Olena and Dimitri's sisters away from him incase he tries to compel them into service."

I rolled my eyes. This faction had resurfaced three years ago, and Lissa had shot down their movement pretty quick. "Lets hope she can get rid of them again," I said to Christian grimly, "Guardians might be loyal to moroi, but if any of them tried forcing their sisters and cousins into service, there would be a revolt. The moroi would end up with no guardians at all."

Christian nodded, and left just then, telling me that he'd suggested Lissa compel prince Taurus, and see how _he_ liked it. "She didn't go for that suggestion for some reason," Christian remarked in mock confusion on his way out the door. A few minutes later the door opened again, and I heard a cry of "Aunt Rose!" before six year old Zoya came tearing into the sitting room, the soon-to-be-six Rurik hot on her heels. They jumped on me, but I managed to catch them in a way that protected my stomach.

"Hey guys! Oh, let me get a look at you two, you've gotten so big..." After kissing the pair of them to death, they went to play in mine and Dimitri's room, and I got to greet everyone else.

"Whoa," I exclaimed, catching sight of Paul. Everything was being said in russian. "Are planning on stopping growing anytime soon? Because I already feel like a midget with everyone, you're just making it worse." At fifteen, Paul was nearly unrecognizeable as the little boy I'd first met six years ago. He was catching up on his father, Dimitri and Ben height-wise, already passing out his step-father, and Savva. He just shrugged, and flopped down on the sofa.

"Not my fault you're tiny."

"Paul," Saveliy scolded playfully, "It's not nice to remind people of how miniscule they are."

"Gee, thanks," I said, giving him a hug. I then put my hands on my hips. "Oi, nephew of mine. Where's my hug? Or are you too cool to hug your aunt?" Paul sighed, before giving me a huge hug, then flopping back down on the couch.

"Of course I'm not too cool to hug my tiny, tiny aunt."

After a few more greetings, and hugs, and jokes about how everybody but Yeva was taller than me, we all sat down, twenty-one month old Yulian playing on the floor with Paul. For a teenage boy, he was really good with his sister and cousins.

"So, what's your big news?" Viktoria asked from her place next to her mother on the loveseat. Ben was sitting on the arm next to Olena. Yeva was in the armchair closest to the door, with me on Dimitri's lap in the other armchair. Saveliy had grabbed a chair from the dinning room, with everyone else on the sofa. I looked at Dimitri accusingly.

"What did you say?"

"I only said," he told me slowly, "That we had big news. I did not, though I was interrogated for the entire car journey, tell them what the news was." Ben, who knew full well what our news was, looked ecstatic.

"Calm down, Rozochka. You're probably just hormonal," he pointed out grinning.

"Why would she be hormonal?" Sonya asked confused. Everyone else looked just as confused, except Yeva, who looked suspicious, and Yulian, who had no clue what was going on.

"Well," Dimitri began, glancing at me and grinning, "Pregnant women tend to be, if memory serves." Silence. Complete and utter silence, except for Ben, who clapped his hands together, and Yulian who was making 'vroom-vroom' noises. Karolina recovered first.

"Um, how exactly did you get pregnant?"

"Well mom," Paul said, turning to her, "When a man and a woman love each other very, very much, they hug in a special way – "

"Yes, Paul, thank you," she interrupted sharply. She turned back to me and Dimitri. "How did you get pregnant, if you've claimed to only have ever slept with my brother? And why are you happy?" That last part was directed at her father.

"Because Dima told me what they were doing before they went," Ben answered her.

There was a chorus of "Went where?" from nearly everyone. Dimitri and I glanced at each other again.

"Did you know," I said, "That the moroi have a sperm clinic."

"A sperm clinic," Viktoria repeated slowly. "You went to a sperm clinic. So you haven't..." I shook my head, I knew what she was insinuating. There was a pause, before she said "A sperm clinic. That's strange, even for you two."

There was a few more minutes of silence before Ben jumped up exclaiming "What is the matter with all of you? Dima and Rose are about to have a baby! We should be happy for them!" He strode over, and shook his son's hand, before kissing me on the cheek. "Congratulations."

As before, Karolina was once again the first to recover, "You're going to have a baby." She turned to her brother. "Dima, you're going to be a father!" She stood up, laughing slightly, and came over to hug the two of us. "This is fantastic! When did you go? When are you due? Isn't this amazing?" She turned to the rest of her family.

"Only if you pay me better than Viktoria and Sonya for babysitting," Paul said, standing up to congratulate us. After that, everyone else seemed to realise that this was a _good_ thing, and folllowed suit. Pretty soon everyone got over the shock. More or less.

"I can't believe you knew what they were planning, and didn't say anything!" Olena said to her husband, elbowing him, after we all say down again.

"I was sworn to secrecy," Ben said. "I didn't even know they went, until Dimitri said they had big news." He looked at Dimitri and me, smiling. "This really is wonderful. So, tell us, tell us, how far along are you? When are you due?"

"Fifteen weeks, as of two days ago, and the end of January," I told them. Yeva started doing some mental math.

"You got pregnant in the beginning of May, correct?" she asked. We nodded. "Then you should be due at the end of February, not January."

"True," Dimitri said, "But twins are normally born at around thirty-six weeks, not forty."

"Twins?" Savva exclaimed. We nodded again.

"It's IVF, what did you expect?" I pointed out. Everyone turned out to be really happy for us. They were _really_ happy when they found out about the twins. There was no mention of my having to leave work, or take a nine-to-five desk job, for which I was grateful. Looked like Dimiri's forbodings came to nothing. Olena didn't seem to be concerned about my work at all. This was great, this was wonderful, knowing that we had the full support of both of our families. Well, I thought we did. Turns out, I really should have waited for dinner before I started celebrating.


	11. Dinner Topics

"When are you leaving work?" Olena asked me halfway through dinner. She was sitting opposite my mother, who was next to me, with Abe on her other side. My parents had stopped by for dinner, and to see the Belikovs. Dimitri was on my other side, on the other end of the large square dinning table. There were three people on each side.

I tried to play it cool, but this was the question I'd been dreading. "I go on desk duty next month," I told her, "And, basically, I go on maternity leave whenever I go into labour. Or if I make it to thirty-eight weeks. Whichever happens first."

"I'd put money on labour," Ben said from next to Olena, twirling his pasta with his fork. "I think it's unlikely to reach thirty-eight weeks with twins."

"How long do you get off?" Karolina asked. "I got five months when I had Zoya, but I can't imagine the guardians giving you much."

"Rose gets six months, and I have paternity leave for the first two," Dimitri answered, smiling. "They don't have a set period for new fathers, so Hans made one up when we told him it was twins."

"One month per baby, seems fair to me," Abe quiped, taking a sip of his wine.

"That's quite long though, I wouldn't have imagined you could get so much."

"Actually," my mother piped up, "That period both allows you to bond with the child, and to get back in shape. It would only take about half of that time to regain form if you sent the baby to an academy immediately, but obviously no mother wants to do that so soon. That period means you can follow a more relaxed training program, and look after the baby. Don't look at me like," she added to me. I'd been giving her a pointed look. "You spent the first seven months of your life in Istanbul with me. I have pictures to prove it."

"So, you'll be returning to work when the babies are six months old?" Olena asked. I could just tell she was working to hide her disapproval. "But how are you going rasie two children with your schedule? It will be too difficult surely." And there it was. Beside me Dimitri grimaced. I put down my knife and fork, and turned to face Olena, trying to say this as calmly as I could. I'd actually rehearsed it, just so I could make sure that my argument was sound. I didn't want to start a fight.

"I'm working out a more stable schedule with Hans and Pawel at the moment, just until the kids are a bit older." Best not to mention any future kids right now. "Same amount of hours, just less night duties. Dimitri's schedule is already much more flexible than mine, unless Christian has a business meeting on the other side of the world." Best not to mention how often that was either. "Plus, all of my colleagues are perfectly willing to swap shifts with me if I needed to. We've been thinking this through since we found out about the clinic, and that was two years ago. We have a solid plan." She didn't look all that convinced. "Look, you can't just expect me to abandon Lissa. I've been slated to guard her since I was five."

"Of course you're not going to abandon Lissa, or your duty." My mother had joined the conversation. "With careful planning the two of you can manage this."

"And what if something happens to you?" Olena said, earnestly. "You'd be leaving your children without a mother."

Dimitri and I glanced at each other. We'd both accumulated some more _molnijas_ in the last few years. The moroi had finally approved taking the offensive against strigoi. Raids that Dimitri and I were normally involved in.

"We're not going to participate in as many raids as we used to," Dimitri told her, "But if we're needed we won't refuse to go. We just won't be volunteering for them." Most of the raids were on a volunteer basis. In fact, many of them had too many volunteers.

"That's something at least, could you pass the bread rolls?" Sonya was clearly trying to change the subject. Considering the storm that we could all sense brewing, I couldn't really blame her.

"They're really nice ones, where did you buy them?" Sonya was helped by Viktoria. They managed to start a discussion about the bread between the two of them, Ben, Savva and Paul. It was a transparent attempt. One that didn't work.

"If they are needed for the raids," Saveliy said, cutting across Ben's critic of the bread rolls. "Then they should go. I'd certainly feel better if they were watching my back." Due to the fact that his charge was situated in Vladivostok, he not only took part in the raids, but had led a few. His nine _molnijas _were a testament to his skill.

"And if something were to happen?" Olena asked scandalised. "The child would be left an orphan!"

"Mama, how can you expect them to abandon their colleagues?" Karolina, it appeared, was on our side.

"She's right," Dimitri said to his mother, "Neither Rose, nor I could, handle the knowledge that we were needed, and then something happened because we refused to go."

"Neither of you are invincible," Olena shot back, "There is no guarantee that you'd come back alive."

"We'd actually realised that, funnily enough," I said, getting irritated. "What with the fact that Dimitri's died once, and I've died twice!"

"It's a risk they all take." Abe had finally put in his two cents. "They know the dangers, they are fully informed of them. You talk as though you believe them to have delusions of immortality, but I can guarantee you that there is not a single guardian so stupid. As much as we want to influence our children to stay perfectly safe, they can't while they know others are in danger. That is not who they are." He turned to look at me and Dimitri, raising his glass to the two of us. "And I am personnally very proud."

"Hear, hear," my mother said. Ben looked like he agreed, but didn't want to say anything to upset his wife.

"And what about the unpromised ones?" Olena just had to bring up Denis. "They have no regard for their lives, and I know you've hunted with them."

"That is completely different," I said, furiously. "They are completely undisciplined, or they were, I don't know about now, but I only needed them to find – " I broke off, realising that Dimitri's mother and sisters still thought the reason I'd first come to Russia was to tell them about Dimitri. I glanced at Yeva, the only one who had yet to speak. The message she sent me was clear: _Time to come clean Rose_. Damn it.

"You needed them to find strigoi," Olena said, "And you say that you are not as reckless as them." Reckless as the unpromised? Well, I might have kept my zaney personality, and most of my plans will eventually involve the phrase 'and from there we wing it', but reckless? Not anymore.

"I didn't need them to find strigoi," I manged to get out. I didn't want to confess this. "I only needed them to find _one_ strigoi."

"What do you mean 'one strigoi'?" Ben asked slowly. Karolina's jaw dropped, and she looked from me to her brother. She'd figured it out apparently. From the look on Viktoria's face, she had as well.

"You were hunting Dima," Viktoria breathed. She didn't sound angry, more amazed. Dimitri and I didn't say anything, but the looks on our faces must have confirmed it. Sonya gasped.

"That's like an epic love story. That should so be mad into a movie," Paul said, looking just as amazed as his aunts. "Not that I'd see it, it'd be complete chick flick, but wow. That must have been impossible for you."

"Paul," Karolina scolded, "Don't talk like that."

"What, you can't tell me that's not, like, true love or whatever!" Paul raised his hands in defence. "I'm a guy, but that doesn't mean I don't know incredible that is."

"That's not what I'm saying at all. I think that it is incredible too – "

"Incredible?" Olena said, looking shocked. "How is that incredible?"

"I was a _strigoi_," Dimitri exclaimed. "A monster. If Rose had managed to kill me, I would been grateful."

"Grateful to be dead? Why would you be grateful to be dead? And she knew of a way to restore strigoi, yet she still tried to kill you!"

"Yes, I would have been. She would have been too, if our roles were reversed. Don't you dare get mad at Rose. She was only fulfilling a promise to me, one we made to each other."

"Besides, I only found out about that after I failed to kill him," I shot at Olena, angrily. "Even then, chances of actually restoring him were pretty slim. You have _no_ _idea_ what I went through to get that information. What Lissa went through to actually make it work."

I stood up, despite the fact that dinner was only half over. "None of this matters anymore. It happened. And you can't use it to try and convince me to leave work, because I would never abandon my charge, or my colleagues. As my dad pointed out, that's just not me. This argument is over." I strode angrily from the dinning room, through the sitting room past the kids, and into mine and Dimitri's bedroom.

Once there, I collapsed on the bed, sobbing into the pillow. God damn hormones. A few minutes later, I heard the door open. I didn't bother checking to see who it was, but when she sat on the bed, and started stroking my hair, I realised it was my mother.

"I kept bursting into tears whenever I saw the Comfort add."

"The what?"

"Comfort is a fabric softener in the UK."

I sat up, brushing away the hair that was sticking to my face. "A fabric softener commercial?" I gave a watery chuckle. "I can't watch the Friends re-runs with Emma or Ben."

She jerked her head towards the door. "That husband of yours is still arguing your case. Karolina and Saveliy are helping him, so's your father, and Yeva. Paul left to watch T.V."

I put my head on her shoulder, and she just continued stroking my hair. "It'll be okay," she told me. "I have faith in you two, and so does everyone else. Olena will come around eventually." I just nodded saying nothing.

"Rose, can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"How did you fail?" my mother asked, incredulously. "I'm happy you did, but how?"

I sat up, rolling my eyes. "Bad angle with the stake. And then he kinda fell into a river, so I couldn't tell whether or not it _was_ a bad angle." My mother just looked at me. "It's a really long story."

"Am I going to hear it?"

"Probably not in this life-time."

My mother just sighed exhasperatedly, pulling me back to her, neither of us saying anything else. I wasn't entirely sure that Olena would come around to the idea, or that she was going to be okay with the fact that I'd tried to kill Dimitri. All I could do was try and explain our situation. That, and hope. I couldn't leave Lissa. She's was practically my sister, how could I just abandon her? She needed me, she may have had Christian, and I may have had Dimitri but there were just some things that we needed each other for. How could I justify leaving?


	12. You've Got A Friend In Me

**A/N:- Thanks again for all the support guys! :D I wouldn't have the will to write without it :) xxx**

Quiet. I had peace, and quiet. At the moment it was just me, sitting on the sofa, alone. Everyone had gone back to guest housing after dinner had ended two hours ago, my mother staying a little bit longer, and Dimitri had just left to go and talk to Christian and Mikhail about training. He hadn't wanted to leave me, but he really had to talk to the pair of them. So I was left alone, once again attempting to finish that proposal, whilst trying to forget today's argument. Then something happened that made me forget about both the fight, and my work. The babies were moving around.

I slowly sat back on the sofa, leaving my laptop on the coffee table, and placed both hands on my not-so-flat stomach. I started to smile, then to laugh. Yesterday, at first, I thought that it was just gas, or nerves about telling Olena, but then I talked to my mother. She'd laughed, before pointing out that she'd thought it was nerves as well when I'd first started moving around. It hadn't been for very long, but I'd been dying to feel them move again. To feel my children. Dimitri had been dying to feel them as well, but no-one but me could feel them just yet.

"What are you smiling at?" I'd been so focused on my squirming babies that I hadn't realised that Lissa had come into the apartment, and was watching me, amused, from the door.

"Oh nothing," I told her, smiling, as she sat down beside me. "Just my children doing the quickstep. Baby Ballroom, here we come."

Lissa beamed at me before saying "I wish I could feel them too. You have to tell me as soon as they start really kicking, okay?"

"That I can do." Catching sight of her face, I sighed. "Spit it out Liss." She'd been looking at me like she had something to say.

"Well Dimitri just went into the study with Christian and Mikhail, and his aura is like a storm cloud." She put her hand on my arm. "How bad?"

"Olena wants me to leave work," I said after a moment, staring at the coffee table, but not really seeing it. "Pretty big argument." I turned to Lissa, to see her regarding me sympathetically.

"She'll see how well the two of are handling everything," she said gently, squeezing my hand. "She'll come around."

I laughed bitterly. "Everyone keeps saying that. Dimitri, my mom, Karolina..." I shook my head. "But I'm not sure. Olena was a stay-at-home-mom until Ben left, and even then she gave medical care to local dhampirs and moroi from home. A business she cut back on when Paul was born, and Karolina started at the restuarant. There has _always_ been someone at home with the kids. Always." I laughed again. "Did you know that she suggested that Sonya leave work? Yeah. Four year degree in early child-care, good job in the day-care, and she wants her to quit because she and Savva are getting married in February."

"Do you know what Sonya said?"

"Yeah, she said no way. And she has Savva's support, plus working in a day-care isn't exactly dangerous, so it's not like Olena's really going to push her." I groaned, and buried my head in her lap. "Why is this happening?"

"It _will_ be okay," Lissa told me. "Everything _will _work out, you just have to have a little faith."

"She knows why I went to Russia," I mumbled into her knee. Lissa sucked in a breath.

"And she's not very happy, is she?" I shook my head. Lissa started stroking my hair. "You were doing what you had to do. You were doing what Dimitri wanted you to do, and you did it out of love. You _know_ that. She can't hold that over you. She has no right."

"Yeah, but it's her son - "

"Doesn't matter," Lissa cut me off, "It's between you and Dimitri, not Olena. You and Dimitri understand, she doesn't have to. And if she can't accept it, then that's her problem, not yours."

I sat up and hugged her. "What would I do without you?" I asked her shoulder.

"Crash and burn," she said, pulling back. "You would most definitely crash and burn."

"Or spent my childhood in juvie."

"That too," she giggled, but then turned serious again. "She won't stay upset for long. She can't, she's too," Lissa searched for the right word.

"Kind?" I suggested, "Sweet? Understanding? Mom-like?"

Lissa thought about it. "Yeah," she said, "They can apply."

She spent the next hour or two reassuring me about Olena, and by the time she went back upstairs, I was feeling much better about the whole situation. I had my amazing husband, the support of my incredible best-friend, not to mention my sisters-in-law, and besides, everyone was right. Olena would come to accept the fact that I was not going to leave the guardians. It would be okay.

It had to be.

* * *

"Are you listening?" No response. "Dimitri!"

"Hmm?" Dimitri looked up from his coffee mug, to see Christian and Mikhail looking at him. They were supposed to be discussing which of the moroi trainees were ready to move on to using a stake, but Dimitri's mind was elsewhere. "Sorry, what did you say?"

His friends glanced at each other. Dimitri was one of the hardest working men around, and normally he was the one who was driving their discussions. His distraction was a little out of character.

"You okay?" Mikhail asked, concerned. "You seem a little off today."

Dimitri just waved off their concerns, though they questioned him a little more, and just insisted they finish off. They followed his lead, and eventually came up with those students they wanted to move on. They bade one another good-night, and Dimitri and Mikhail were just at the door, when they heard Christian calling out from the study.

"Dimitri, is this yours?"

"What is it?" Dimitri called back, his hand on the open door that Mikhail had just walked through. Dimitri was fairly sure he had everything that he brought with him, but who knows what may have migrated upstairs. He glanced at Mikhail, who was just over the threshold.

"It's a... thingy, I don't know, it's not mine."

Dimitri shrugged at Mikhail, who said he'd see him tomorrow, before leaving. Dimitri shut the door, and went back inot the study to see what the mysterious 'thingy' was.

"So what are you talking about?" he said as he came into the study to see Christian leaning against the desk.

"How bad was it?"

"How bad was what?" Though Dimitri had an idea as to what Christian was talking about. He also began to doubt the existence of the 'thingy'.

"Your mom!" Christian pushed himself off the desk, and came a few strides forward. "Look, I know you, you're one of my best friends. I can tell it didn't go well. What happened?"

"Am I that obvious?" Dimitri sighed and sink down in one of the armchairs in front on the desk, Christian taking the other one, nodding."My mother wants Rose to leave work. We argued, Rose locked herself in the bedroom for an hour, and I don't think my mother and Janine are on speaking terms anymore." He sighed again. "It did not go well."

"I don't understand how she can justify asking Rose to leave," Christian said, shaking his head. "I know it's your mom, but it's yours and Rose's decision. She shouldn't have a say."

Dimitri laughed bitterly. "See there's the thing," he told Christian, "She's always had a say. In how Karolina raised Paul and Zoya, and then Sonya with Rurik, Viktoria with Yulian. It was only when they moved out that, well, she stopped..." he searched for the right word. "Advising them, I suppose. She _likes_ just being the grandmother. She's not a domineering woman, she wasn't forcing them to do anything, if they didn't take her advice then she said nothing, but this is different."

"How? Seems like a double standard to me."

"This is a huge decision, one that she feels strongly about," Dimitri explained. "Mothers should be at home with their children if they have the opportunity, and a husband with a stable job, is certainly an opportunity."

"Okay," Christian said slowly, "That's kind of sexist. No, that _is_ sexist. And not something that Rose will ever accept."

"No," Dimitri agreed, "She won't."

"It'll be okay though, she'll come to terms with your decision eventually."

"Now, see I've said that to Rose, Karolina has said it, my father said it, Janine said it, Abe, Viktoria, but I don't think any of us believe it. I certianly don't, and nor does Karolina," Dimitri said.

"Then why did you tell Rose that?" Christian asked.

"Because stress isn't good for Rose or the babies," Dimitri told him, "She doesn't need that."

There was a pause before Christian said "Look, she can't keep going on about it, everything will work out. It has to. Besides," he added wryly, "Hard to make her disapproval know if she lives in Russia." Dimitri smiled slightly. They heard the fornt door of the penthouse open at that point.

"That's probably Lissa, I should go," Dimitri said standing, Christian following suit.

"Yeah, look man, it'll be fine, and even if it's not, just think of all the support you _do _have," Christian told him, following him out the door, where they ran into Lissa. They said goodnight to one another before Dimitri left, saying he really needed to go make sure Rose was okay.

"Is she?" Chrsitian murmured, wrapping his arms around Lissa's waist as the door shut behind Dimitri. "Okay that is?"

"Yeah," Lissa said, nodding, "She's fine. I take it you two talked?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"Because according to his aura, Dimitri's okay now too."

* * *

"No," I said, grabbing Dimitri's arm, and pulling him back down onto the sofa. "We are doing this." He'd just come back down from upstairs a few minutes ago, to find me waiting for him. With a DVD.

"Is it really that important?" he sighed. "Do we _really_ have to do this?"

"Absolutely Comrade," I replied, "I _refuse_ to raise children with a man who has never seen these movies."

"Maybe that's because I've never seen the point."

"Come, it'll be fun! Plus I've got it all set up and everything."

Dimitri just sighed, and wrapped an arm around my shoulders as I pressed play. He rolled his eyes when I started singing along to the theme music.

"You've got a friend in me..."

"Roza, do we really need to have a Toy Story marathon?"

**A/N:- Toy Story marathons are as necessary as oxygen IMO :P**


	13. Baby Talk

**A/N:- Sorry for the wait lads, but I've been pretty busy for the last week. The last of my friends just finished their exams on Friday :D, and we've been celebrating/planning a trip. Plus I start my first job tomorrow :) and my cousin is coming over from England for my Granny's eightieth birthday so I'm not gonna have loads of time. So, I'm gonna give ye two :)**

"Olena, we need to talk about something."

Olena looked up from the shirt she was folding, and turned to her husband, who was putting some clothes away in the chest of drawers on the far side of the bed. They were leaving in a day, so the kids could get back to school on time, and Olena had wanted to get a head start on packing.

"About what?" Olena asked confused. She didn't know what it was about, though she could tell from Benedikt's tone, that it was nothing good.

"Rose leaving work," Benedikt told her.

"I know that you don't agree with me," Olena cut him off, waving a hand, as he started to speak again. "But I can't understand how she can justify being absent from her childrens' lives!"

Benedikt moved to sit on the bed, as Olena continued to fold. "Because she is a guardian. Because she can't sit still while others are in danger. That's not who she is. Because she can't sit still on a normal day. Dima wouldn't love her otherwise." Olena sighed. Benedikt grabbed her hand, stopping her folding. "It's not fair to ask her to change like that."

"Children change you," Olena pointed out, "They changed us, you know they did. _I_ wanted to go to medical school, but that was a dream I sacrificed when I got pregnant. I know that you were willing to make arrangments so that I could still go," she continued, "But I wouldn't have been able to raise a child and concentrate on my studies at the same time. I don't see how Rose can manage such a high responsibility job, and two children either."

Benedikt said nothing, thinking of his next argument. "What about our daughters?" he asked finally, "They all work, though they don't have to. You know I have enough money."

"That's more to do with pride," Olena said, "They want to be able to look after their own children themselves."

Benedikt just looked at her. "That's a weak argument, and a double standard. You know it is." Neither of them said anything for a long time, they just continued to fold the clothes. Olena did know that it she had a weak argument, but her wish for Rose to retire was more to do with the dangers of the job. She didn't want her grandchildren to be left orphans. Along with losing Dima and Rose, she knew that she'd never be able to fight Lissa and Christian for custody. She might lose her grandchildren too. Benedikt eventually broke the silence.

"They're guardians. Protecting people is what they do. No-one can ask them to change that." Benedikt paused again before saying "This isn't about why Rose came to Russia, is it?"

Olena sighed. "No, this has nothing to do with that. If it was, I'd be suing for custody. I am not happy with it," she said when Benedikt looked disbelieving, "But what can I do? It's some noble promise that they made to one another, it's their business, their realtionship. Not my place to say anything."

"And it's your place to insist that Rose gives up the career she has worked towards her entire life?" Benedikt gave his wife a pointed look. Olena sighed. Benedikt had her, and she knew it.

"No, it isn't," she agreed, "You're right. Also, I'm worried about her stress levels. Her job is stressful you know, it can't really be good for – "

"No."

"I just want to help – "

"No help, unless it's asked for."

"But – "

"No!"

Olena glared at Benedikt, then threw a rolled up pair of socks at him. He was right, of course, but that didn't mean that she had to like it. She really should just butt out. Benedikt threw the socks back. Olena whacked him with a pillow, which Benedikt caught, and threw across the room, before grabbing Olena around the waist, and pulling her onto the bed, pinning her underneath him.

"What time's Dima's party again?" Benedikt asked, slightly breathlessly

"Eight," Olena told him. Benedikt glanced at the clock, and swore. It was just after seven thirty.

"We don't really have time then."

Olena considered that. "Hmm, I think we do."

Obviously, they were late.


	14. Birthday Party Talks

Your stereotypical mother-in-law is normally a domineering control freak, who is convinced that you are in no possible way good enough for her little boy. She hates you. She complains about your parenting skills. She complains about your cooking. Your stereotypical mother-in-law, is normally a bonafide _monster_-in-law. I have never had any experience with that however. My mother-in-law was great. She was wonderful. In fact, I am convinced that seriously I lucked out in that department, because we got along fantastically. I also thought that she was a great mother and grandmother, so I was pretty excited to be having a baby, knowing how lucky they were to have her in their lives. So you can imagine how upset I was, when I realised that we were not going to be able to agree over the fact that I was not going to be leaving work once my children were born. A pretty big issue in my opinion.

It hadn't been brought up since that disastrous dinner, but I knew that Olena was still thinking about it. Actually, I was pretty sure she had discussed it with Dimitri, trying to get him to talk to me. They kept breaking off mid-conversation when I entered the room. I'm pretty sure she was longing for the days when I didn't speak Russian. They'd once managed to plan a surprise birthday party for me, while I was still in the room.

"Does your mother still want me to leave work?" Stupid question. Of course she did. I was currently sitting cross-legged on the bed, while Dimitri put away his things, getting ready for bed. "I mean, has she talked to you about it?" Dimitri didn't answer right away, he just continued putting his clothes in the hamper. "You can tell me."

He still didn't answer, but came around to his side of the bed, and got under the covers. "Yes," he said finally. "She has talked to me."

"Why hasn't she said anything to me?"

"Because I told her not to. Look," Dimitri said, sitting up, because I think I looked a little mad at that. "You don't need anymore stress at the moment, especially not from my mother's unreasonable demands. You're not going to change your position and – "

"And I think that I'm capable of arguing my case myself," I said, slightly annoyed. I thought that I had the right to know what his mother said to him about me, not to mention to have the chance to defend myself.

"Yes, you are," Dimitri agreed, "But so am I. Also you being capable doesn't mean," he cut me off as I opened my mouth to speak, "That an argument, a worse one than a few days ago, isn't going to do any harm to you or our babies. I've been doing some reading, high blood-pressure is very bad for pregnant women, especially when they're carrying multiples. It's also more common." He leaned foreard, and kissed me briefly. "You can't tell me that another fight won't do any damage."

"Not of the magnitude you're afraid of," I pointed out.

"I can't risk it," he said, shaking his head, "I _won't_ risk anything happening to you, or our children. I won't be able to survive if something does."

"So you're telling me," I replied after a moment, shifting my position slightly "That until I actually give birth, you're going to be overprotective, and overbearing?"

Dimitri thought about it. "More or less." I gave him a look that I hope said _really?_ He just pecked me on the cheek.

"Sorry," he said pulling back, not really sounding like he was all that sorry. I just shook my head. "I'm not changing my stance on that." I knew he wouldn't either. Plus, it's not like I couldn't understand where he was coming from. I was sixteen weeks along, in my second trimester, but I was still terrified of losing the babies. In fact, I was insisting on weekly doctor visits, and was practically overdosing on pre-natal vitamins. I just rolled my eyes, and lay down on the pillows. Dimitri did the same, and we shifted, so that his arms were around my waist, one hand resting on my stomach.

"Don't worry about my mother," he told me, "I can handle her. You just relax, and let me deal with everything."

Let my husband deal with everything, and not worry my pretty little head about it? With my independent nature, that was practically blasphemy. And not something I was going to able to abide by for very long. I wasn't a feminist exactly, but still. I didn't really like that very much. I sighed, and snuggled closer to Dimitri.

"You're lucky you're cute, Comrade." I turned my head around to look at him. "That's all I'm saying."

The next day was Dimitri's birthday, and we were having a small party at home. Dimitri didn't want a fuss, so we were just having a few friends over, as well as our families, with party food set up in the kitchen, since we weren't having a sit down dinner. Though Olena still commandeered the kitchen yesterday so she could make a cake. To be honest, I kind of got the feeling that she was avoiding me. She came in as I was leaving, and was leaving when I returned. Not to mention that she hardly spoke to me, and if she did then there was always a third party. I had a feeling it was because of Dimitri's warning. I still wasn't really sure how I felt about that. On the one hand, it was sweet that he was looking out for me. On the other, it was a tad annoying, and it felt like he thought that I couldn't look after myself.

It was just after eleven, and we had just sang Dimitri Happy Birthday, and cut the cake. The party had been going on for three hours, but I had only briefly spoken to Olena when she had arrived. Looking around the room, I spotted her by the door leading into the kitchen, chatting with Abe. I saw her say something, and point towards the kitchen before ducking in. Deciding that I'd had enough of her avoiding me, I followed her, only to see that it was just Kaleo, Mikhail, and Eddie, having a discussion about UFOs. I wasn't entirely sure as to whether or not they were drunk.

Considering there was no Olena in sight, I strode around the guys, who were debating whether or not we were being visited extraterrestials (definitely drunk), and through the door that led to the dining room. There she was, getting a slice of cake. She didn't look up on my entrance.

"Hey," I said, shutting the door behind me. Olena started slightly, and looked round. She'd apparently not noticed that I'd come in. "Nice to know I'm not the only one who's eating all the cake." I helped myself to a slice, and started to eat it, neither myself, nor Olena, saying anything.

"Well, no point in wasting a perfectly good cake," she told me after a moment, smiling slightly, looking a bit awkward. "We should probably get back to the party." She made to move towards the door, but I grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Wait, Olena," I paused, not really sure how to go about this, "I think we need to talk about last week."

"Rose, maybe we should just get back to the party – " Olena clearly didn't want to talk to me. I, on the other hand, thought that we needed to discuss it.

"I know that Dimitri said not to talk to me about," I cut across her, not letting her escape. "Look, I really don't want this to be on anyone's mind, and to have it hanging over us."

"And I don't want to cause you any stress by having an argument," Olena said, "We both know that you're not going to leave work, so there doesn't seem to be much point in talking about it." She moved towards the door again. "We really should get back to the party." She waited for me to go ahead of her. I didn't move.

"So you're okay with the fact that I'm not going to leave the guardians?" I didn't believe that she was for a second.

Olena hestitated before speaking. "No," she said finally. "I'm not really happy about it. I just think that children should have their mothers at home with them, especially when they're very young."

"Well, it's not like we're going to send the kids to the academy when they're only a few months old," I exclaimed, throwing out my arms. "Plus, what do you want me to do when they're older, and they are at the academy? Sit around, doing nothing?" Maybe I could go on the Real Houswives of Court.

"Okay, you may have a point with that," she conceded, "But can't you take a break for a few years?"

That was something that Dimitri and I had considered, but had decided against it. "Dimitri and I think that it will be too hard to return to work afterwards. And my mother agrees with us," I told her, "So, that's not something that I can do either."

Neither of us said anything for a few moments. We just stood there awkwardly. "We're clearly not going to agree," Olena said finally, "And I don't think that anyone else agrees with me, either." She smiled wryly. "I know that Benedikt doesn't."

"What's he saying?" I asked slowly, with a slight smile.

"To just leave you two alone, and let you raise your children, how you think is best. Just like we did. Or tried." Olena smiled again. "So, that's what I'm going to do. You're having your first child, _twins_, you don't need me breathing down your necks."

"Well, tell him I said thanks," I said, "And thanks for backing off. I did _not_ like you not being on board."

"Oh, I am," she said, putting her arm around my shoulders, and giving me a slight squeeze. "I think that you two will make wonderful parents. So I'm just going to support the two of you."

That was slightly unexpected. I honestly hadn't thought that she would come around so soon. I was speechless. I couldn't think of a single thing to say. I just hugged her back, hoping to translate how much that meant to me through the hug. Olena put her hand on my cheek, and we went back to the party through the kitchen, to find that Marios and Harry had joined the UFO debate. Olena restarted whatever conversation she had been having with my father, while I wound my way through the party to Dimitri. He was standing to one side, with a glass of wine in one hand, talking to a couple of his friends and Viktoria. I joined the conversation, after getting myself a glass of coke. No alcohol for me.

Dimitri really enjoyed his birthday. It was a great party, that went on until the early hours of the morning, and as we were climbing into bed, after seeing Olena and Ben out, I got to give Dimitri his _other_ birthday present. I could always tell him what his mother siad later.


	15. Maternity

"No. Absolutely not. No way in hell. Niet, non, negative, and any other negation you can think of." No response. "I am not wearing that!"

I was currently in the maternity section of department store at Court with Lissa, staring at the monstrosity that she was trying to get me to try on. None of my pants fit anymore, except for my sweatpants, and they weren't going to last for the entire pregnancy. At five and a half months I was now noticeably showing, and was squeezing into my T-shirts. So here we were, trying to find me maternity clothes that weren't frilly, or girly, or, well, _pink_. That seemed to be the main colour scheme.

"Oh come on," Lissa sighed, "It's not that bad." I just looked at her, feeling mutinous. She sighed again. "Just try them on, will you?"

Sulkily, I took the hangers from her and went into the dressing room to try on the clothes. Once I'd changed, I looked at myself in the mirror, sighed then pulled back the curtain to see Lissa, looking expectant. When she saw me, she got one of those looks, that people get when they see something that they think is just adorable. Behind her, I could see Fane and Iosif, two of Lissa's entourage today (Harry, Anthony and Vitali were spread out), giving me the thumbs up, and smirking. Real professional guys.

I was officially on desk duty as of last week, so I no longer counted as protection when Lissa left the palace. I may not be allowed to do anything dangerous, but I still ran everyday, which I was planning on doing until I was in my last trimester, and I wasn't wadling yet. My stomach was a bit bigger than a month and a half ago, but it was still a small bump. Now it was just more noticeable. The only good thing about desk duty was I now had plenty of time to write up all my ideas for the novice curriculum, and discuss them with some members of the Guardian Council. Or as Christian put it, harass them.

"Now what's wrong with that?" She asked me, "You look so cute." I turned around and looked at myself in the mirror. The top I had on was a wide round neck, that fit perfectly over my stomach, and showed it off, coming in just under my bust and flaring out. It had three quarter lenght sleeves, that were slightly frilly on the ends, as was the hem. It was also pink. A pink floral pattern, to be exact. Admittedly, it _was_ kind of cute. It also, wasn't really me. The pants were okay, I suppose. They were black, and made of a stretchy fabric, and were pretty comfortable. They fit, and weren't ridiculous, which was all that I asked for. I told Lissa this as I changed, and we continued looking. We eventually found a some nice, not frilly, long sleeved tops, and sweaters, and even a couple of dresses. One that I_ really_ liked, was a blue and white sweater, with thin, horizontal stripes. I ended up buying the black pants.

"Whoa," I said, putting my hand on my stomach. We had just left the store, and were looking for somwhere to have lunch.

Lissa put her hand on my arm, concerned. "Are you okay?"

Yeah, it's just the babies are kicking." They'd started kicking last week, much to mine and Dimitri's delight. Lissa's face lit up. She'd been dying to feel them kicking, but was never around when they were.

"Can I feel them?"

"Not unless you're a kidney." My kidneys and bladder seemed to be their favourite punching bags. Lissa was disappointed, and we kept going eventually choosing somewhere to eat.

"Okay," I said as we sat down in one of the cafés, Fane and Iosif taking a table by the door, "I was this close – " I held up my hand, thumb and forefinger barely touching " - to just buying ordinary clothes in a bigger size. Thank God, we found the not-frilly section."

Lissa made no answer, just smiled slightly. I thought she seemed a bit distracted. To be honest, I thought that she seemed a bit distracted all day, like she was steeling herself to say something. I'd been debating about just asking her what it was, or letting her tell me herself. I chose the former.

"Alright, what is it?" Lissa looked up startled. "I know there's something," I told her, smiling. "Spit it out Liss." She still made no reply, but glanced around at the others in the café. Being the ruler of the moroi, and her best friend, we were getting a good deal of attention, here, and in the stores we were in. Normally, we all just ignored the stares. It came with the territory of being 'the intimate friends of Her Majesty'.

"I'll tell you at home," she said, "I don't want to risk anyone over-hearing. No-one else can know just yet."

I raised, my eyebrows. "Is everything okay?" There didn't seem to be anything wrong. She seemed more excited than upset, but I couldn't help but worry.

"Everything's fine," she told me, "In fact it's great news." Lissa started grinning. "It really is great news. I've actually been dying to tell you for the last two weeks."

"But you can't tell me now?"

"At home, I promise."

Okay, now I was curious. We ended up having a very quick lunch, because Lissa was dying to tell me her news. Not that I minded not really having a big lunch. _I_ was dying to know.

Once we got to my apartment, and put the shopping bags in my bedroom, we sat down in the sitting room, with cups of tea and some crackers. The morning sickness hadn't entirely gone away yet, and the crackers helped. Kaleo and Tom were standing guard outside my front door.

"Alright, spill," I said, when we were comfortable. Lissa looked really excited.

"Well, Christian is probably telling Dimitri, right about now, so there's no real need for secrecy with him." Now, I was _really_ curious. Lissa took a deep breath, before saying "I'm pregnant."

My jaw dropped. I was shocked. I hadn't even known that they were trying. After a moment, I recovered enough to ask how far along she was.

"Six weeks, as of three days ago. My first ultrasound is tomorrow." Lissa looked like she was going to cry from happiness. "We've been trying since we got married, because we thought that it would take a while." It sure had taken a while. Their second anniversary was in two months.

"Lissa, that's amazing!" I'd finally recovered fully, and was truly excited for my friends. "You guys are having a baby! You're going to be parents! Oh, Lissa, this is fantastic!" I hugged her, feeling like I was going to tear up myself. I knew how badly Lissa and Christian wanted kids. They actually had all the names picked out. Unlike me and Dimitri. We couldn't agree on anything.

When we pulled back, I saw Lissa wiping away a stray tear. That set me off, and soon enough we were both trying to dry our eyes.

"You're due in what, May?" Lissa nodded. "Our kids are going to be in the same class in school!"

"Best of friends, just like their mothers."

"We can go to Play-Group together!"

"Have play-dates all the time."

"We're having kids!"

"Yeah," Lissa said, giving a watery laugh, "We're going to be mothers." We hugged again, both of us laughing, and still crying slightly.

"Hormones are fun, aren't they?" I asked Lissa. She just laughed harder. We were still holding onto each other, when the front door opened, and our respective husbands walked in. They looked like they were in a good mood too. We broke apart, grinning.

"I take it you told her?" Christian asked, as he dumped his gym bag on the floor, next to Dimitri's. I stood up, and hugged him.

"Crongratulations!" I said. I pulled back. "You're going to be a great dad."

"Course I am," he replied, smirking, as Dimitri bent down to kiss Lissa on the cheek, and congratulate her. The four of us spent the rest of the day celebrating. Dimitri and I were of course sworn to secrecy. They would make a formal announcement when Lissa was twelve weeks along. I was so, so happy for them. They were having a baby. This was wonderful. We were both having a baby, babies in my case. We ate dinner together, as usual, though Lissa and Christian stayed longer than normal as we were all pretty jubilant. I couldn't wait to see the ultrasound pictures tomorrow. I was delighted for them, I knew that they would make great parents. I was also excited over the fact that we would be raising our children at the same time, and going through pregnancy at the same time. This was truly some of the best news that I'd ever gotten.


	16. Husbands Of Pregnant Wives Support Group

When your wife is pregnant, there is an awful lot of things that you have to put up with. Random crying, random anger, random giggles... strange eating habits. Not only the food runs in the middle of the night, but what they are actually eating like, say –

"Broccoli, wiped cream, and choclate sauce, with grated carrot on top?" Christian looked at Dimitri in disbelief. The two of them were sitting at the counter of their favourite bar, each with a drink in front of him. It was Friday night, and Lissa and Rose had insisted that they go out, and have some time away from their hormonally charged wives. So there they were, Christian drinking Guiness, Dimitri with a bottle of Coke, discussing the strange eating habits of said pregnant wives. Lissa was nearly thirteen weeks along at this point, and they were planning on making the announcement tomorrow.

"Yeah," Dimitri said, bringing his drink to his lips. "I am not making that up, I swear. Don't get me started on what she did to the cucumber."

"Did _to_ the cucumber, or _with_ the cucmber?" Christian asked, laughingly. "Because that made it sound like she was beating it up or something." Dimitri chuckled, taking a drink of Coke.

"Oh, that reminds me. Lissa had a salad today," Christian told him, taking a sip of his own drink. "Lettuce, rocket salad," he paused for a moment, shaking his head, as he remember the monstrosity she had been eating, "Cabbage, spinach, and _seaweed_, boiled in a pot, then she tossed in some cucumber and tomatoes, little bit of celery and topped it with cesar salad dressing. Oh," he added, "And then melted goats' cheese." He paused again. "She hates goats' cheese." Dimitri started laughing, trying not to spray Coke everywhere. "Which she remembered after she started eating it." Dimitri laughed harder.

"Rose hates broccoli," Dimitri said, once he'd stopped laughing. "And cucumber!"

"Unless you put wiped cream over it."

They both started laughing at that point, regaling each other of everything that Rose and Lissa were doing. Like clock work, Rose started craving a fish burger from McDonald's at three in the morning. Lissa couldn't sleep unless she had grilled ham and cheese, with mayonaise before bed. Rose started sobbing if she saw children on T.V. Lissa had already donated three thousand dollars to childrens' charity organisations in Africa, and got upset if Christian tried to stop her. He was convinced a few of them were fake. With good reason too. They _were_ fake, but he still couldn't stop her. She claimed it was her maternal instinct coming out.

"At least we can laugh about the mood swings," Dimitri pointed out, still chuckling. "Imagine if we took it too seriously?"

"We'd go insane," Christian said, likewise still laughing. "But, come on, they're both too cute to get upset at. Although," he added, "I wouldn't mind Lissa deciding that she didn't ever want to eat that 'salad', _ever again_." He shuddered.

That set them off again. On the one hand, it was a little cruel that they were having a laugh at the girls' expense. On the other hand, if they didn't, they might lose their minds.

"Look at this," Dimitri said, pulling out his wallet. He took an ultrasound picture from it, and showed it to Christian. Rose was nearly seven months along now, and starting to waddle a little. She had a very noticeable baby bump now, though Lissa wasn't showing yet.

"Nice," said Christian taking the picture and smiling. The twins were now very distinguishable as babies, instead of dots on a screen. "Do you know what they are yet?"

Dimitri shook his head. "We're going to wait until the amniocentesis next month. We don't even know if they're identical yet. Although the doctor thinks that they aren't, because they have two placentas."

"So which one's my godchild?"

Dimitri rolled his eyes, and said "You'll meet him or her very soon, don't worry." He took a quick glance around the bar, and said in a low voice "Are you and Lissa planning on finding out before the birth?"

"Nah, we're going to wait," Christian replied, equally as quiet. "We want to be surprised."

"I want to wait as well," Dimitri told him, "But Rose doesn't, and if she knows, there's no chance that I'll be able to wait, knowing that she knows." Trying to be funny he added "You know?"

"Sure, why not?" Christian shrugged. "This is my second beer, so I'm probably not going to know anything in a little while. Might as well claim that." The two of them started laughing again, Dimitri ordering a beer, once he'd finished his Coke.

"I'd show you Lissa's latest scan," Christian said after Dimitri's drink had come, "But someone could see, and then everyone would know before we made the big announcement." He rolled his eyes. "I swear, gossip spreads around here three times as fast as it does at St. Valdimir's."

"And yet," Dimitri adopted a mock puzzled expression, "I have to ask nearly everyone I see, before someone can tell me the score in the Sabres versus the Maple Leafs game." He shrugged.

"Don't they know how important ice-hockey is?" Christian chuckled. "Oh, yeah are you watching the game this weekend?"

"Definitely."

"Well, Rose's baby shower is at the same time, and since you're getting kicked out of your apartment because of your gender, why don't we grab Mikhail, Adrian and Eddie, and watch the game? Hey," he added, as though struck by a sudden thought, "We can ask Mia's new guy, what's-his-name – "

"Jake."

"Yeah, Jake. You know, rough him up a little. Let him know what'll happen if he breaks her heart."

"I'm more worried about Mia finding out, and breaking our heads."

"That's a distinct possibility," Christian agreed, "Come on, what do you say? It'll be fun." Dimitri agreed, and they started talking about the hockey game, and fantasising about taking their sons to future hockey games.

"I don't care if they're girls," Dimitri said, "They have Rose for girly things, we're playing sports. And camping," he added, "We're all going camping."

"How exactly are you going to get Rose to sleep in a tent?"

"I'll think of something."

They talked about sports, and impending fatherhood for a little while longer, before calling it a night just before one. It had been a good night, the both of them having fun. They both agreed, that when the babies were born, the four of them would still do things like that, that they wouldn't become those parents whose social life completely faded away after they had kids. That was, of course, easier said than done.


	17. Penguins and Teddy Bears

**A/N:- To RozaDimkaReader: I wasn't planning on this, but because you asked so nicely :)**

"Shoot, what are you – !"

"Come on, shoot – !"

"Go Flyers!"

Eddie clamped his hand over Arian's mouth, pushing him back down onto the sofa, then lamenting with Dimitri and Mikhail when the goalie saved the shot. The three of them fell back onto the sofa, groaning in frustration, while Christian and Adrian cheered. The five of them were currently in Mikhail and Sonya's apartment, watching the game.

"The Penguins are still winning," Dimitri pointed out, taking a sip of his beer. "The Flyers have yet to score."

"There's still time, we'll come back," Adrian responded. "Foul!"

"Oh come on, put him in the penalty box!" Christian yelled at the referee. "Are you blind?" They argued for a few minutes as to whether or not that was actually a foul, but suddenly fell silent when the doorbell rang. They all exchanged glances. There was only one person that could be.

"Be nice," Dimitri warned, as Mikhail got the door. Christian and Eddie just smirked in response, Adrian sitting back, looking like he was about to enjoy the show. Mikhail returned a few moments later with a moroi, a young guy, no older than twenty-two with light brown hair and brown eyes. Mia's boyfriend of two months, Jake Rosenburg. He looked pretty nervous. He didn't have much of a reason to be. They were only going to threaten him a little. Nothing too serious, pretty standard really.

Whilst Mikhail made the introductions, Eddie got Jake a beer, while also giving him an evil, mischievious look. This was going to be fun.

"You're a Penguins man," Dimitri noted. Like the rest of them, Jake was wearing a team jersey, the same kind as Dimitri, Eddie and Mikhail. Dimitri clapped him on the shoulder. "Excellent, we can't have any more Flyers fans – tackle you idiot! – we'd be even if you were. What are you doing?" he yelled at the T.V., cursing in russian when the Flyers got the puck.

"Yeah, I like outnumbering those two," Eddie said to Jake as he sat back down again, offering him some Pringles. Everyone – save Jake – got pretty excited, and started screaming at the T.V. when a Penguin player took a shot on goal. It was saved again, much to the three dhampirs loud, and energetic dismay. Jake was still a bit too intimidated to say much. Though he still wished his team had scored.

Nothing really exciting happened in the game for about another ten minutes, though Jake slowly warmed up to everyone. In between shouting at the screen, the six of them made small talk, like where was everyone from, how where Rose and Lissa, what was Jake studying, and other things like that. Then, something happened that made Christian and Adrian very happy: the Flyers scored twice in a row, making them even with the Penguins. At thirty seconds to go, the Penguins got the puck.

"Yes, yes, yes! Come on!" Eddie yelled, as the Penguins closed in on the goal. Everyone stood up, as there was a battle in front of the goal. All the guys were cheering one their respective teams, even Jake, and then –

"Yes!" Mikhail yelled, punching the air. The Penguins had scored, just before the final whistle blew. Adrian groaned, putting his head in his hands, while Christian threw a handful of chips at Dimitri, who was celebrating with the other three. After a little while everyone calmed down, and started discussing the finer points of the game. That didn't last long, however.

"So, Mr. Rosenburg," Adrian said nonchalantly, opening new drink. "I think that we need to have a little word with you." Jake began to get nervous again.

"Yes," Christian agreed, "Yes we do." He paused for dramatic effect, grinning when he saw Dimitri who was shaking his head, and rolling his eyes. He put on a serious expression when he turned back to Jake. This was going to be fun. "What exactly are your intentions towards Mia?"

* * *

"Oh, they are not," Mia said, taking a bite of her cupcake. She was sitting in the sitting room of mine and Dimitri's apartment, with me, Lissa, Jill, Sydney and Sonya. We were waiting on a couple of friends of mine. Louise, a maid in the palace, and Suzanne, a woman who worked in the café by the guardians' headquaters. She still told anyone who would listen about Dimitri's defense of me at her arrest six years ago.

"Oh yes they are," I told her, one hand resting on my swollen stomach. "I can _guarantee_ you, that they are shaking down your boyfriend, right about now."

"Why?"

"Because they want to protect you," Lissa responded. Mia looked at her in disbelief. "Okay, that's only part of the reason. Mostly, they'll think it's funny."

Mia groaned, everyone else laughing. The door opened just then, just as Mia began plotting how to kill the guys, and Louise and Suzanne walked in. They were both moroi, Suzanne the same age as Dimitri, with Louise being just a little younger. They both bowed respectfully to Lissa, who nodded politely in return, asking them how they were. We'd given up on trying to get them to call her Lissa a few years ago.

"Alright let's get this party started," I announced, "What games do you have for us Lissa?" She'd been adamant about planning this.

"Well, I was thinking that we could start a pool, about what the babies are, when you'll have them, and whether or not they're fraternal or identical," she suggested. Then she grinned. "Afterwards we'll do presents."

"Identical boys," Mia said quickly, "And they'll be three days after your due-date."

Sydney disagreed. "They're definitely fraternal, one of each, and _on_ your due-date." Lissa was taking this down. "Do you know what they are yet?"

"Not a clue," I told her, "Besides, I can't tell you. That would defeat the purpose of this game."

The others started placing their bets, and guessing about gender.

"Right now," Jill quiped, "She'll have them _right now_." We all stopped, and stared at my stomach.

"Well Jill loses," I pointed out after a minute or two, all of us laughing. I thought that it was a really good baby shower. The guys got me some really cool stuff, like this really cute set of onesies from Sonya and Mikhail, and a set of teddy bears from Lissa and Christian. I hoped that the guys had as much fun. Considering how they all were about hockey, that was a given. What was concerning me, was whether or not Jake made it out alive.

* * *

"What about Katerina?" Dimitri asked. We were sitting in bed, reading a baby name books, everyone having left hours ago. Dimitri told me what Christian and Eddie said to Jake. Poor kid was probably going to have nightmares.

I thought about the name. "We'll put it on the short list." We really needed to decide on named for the babies. I was due in just under two months. "I kind of like Henry for a boy. Or maybe Percy."

"How about this," Dimitri said, turning slightly to look at me. "We have one english name, and the other one is russian. Sound fair?"

That actually did sound fair. Plus I liked the idea that both of our native languages would be represented. However I didn't like it when Dimitri told me that he thought Percy was outdated.

"It sounds like a stuffy old man," he shrugged.

"No it doesn't! By the way, we are definitely not naming our son _Arkadiy_."

We ended up arguing. It was the exact same argument we'd been having since I got pregnant. We simply couldn't decide on baby names.

"What about Rowan? He'd sort of be named after you," Dimitri suggested, "The Rowan _tree_, the Rose _flower_. Same first syllable."

"Then we're naming a daughter Demi," I replied, "Same first syllable." I knew that he wouldn't go for that, and I didn't really like the name Rowan. Dimitri flopped onto the pillows.

"Let's just give up," he said, "We'll call them Baby A and Baby B. Or maybe Baby 1 and 2. Maybe X and Y." He closed his eyes and sighed. "We can't even decide on that."

"What do you mean 'we'? _I_ like A and B Mr. Indecisive," I said, "Not really sure that they'll let us put that on the birth certificates though." I laughed and nudged his shoulder. "Oh come on, we'll figure this out. If worst comes to worst, we'll just let Lissa name the babies."

Dimitri laughed as well, putting an arm shoulders, drawing me closer to him. I rested my head on his chest. "Well at least there's that," he laughed, "And I'm pretty sure that no-one has ever had to resort to calling their children numbers or letters." He rested his chin on top of my head. We both lay back, snuggling together under the covers. We may not have made any headway that night, but there was still time. We'd find the perfect names eventually. Dimitri pecked me on the lips.

"Good-night Roza."


	18. The Banquet

**A/N:- Thanks to RiseAgainstItAll for taking a look at this chapter :). **

**To RozaDimkaReader:- Soon, everyone will know what I'm going to name the babies :P**

"Stop grumbling," Dimitri called, with a slight smirk from his postion on the sofa in the sitting room. He was already dressed, in standard guardian attire, but Christian was still in his room of the two bedroom suite they were staying in, getting ready.

Christian gave the back of Dimitri's head a dark look, before he went back to fixing his tie. "I am not grumbling." He had in fact been muttering in annoyance about the event they were about to attend. About a year ago the moroi council had finally approved the construction of a new gym specifically for moroi combat training. The facility was going to serve any adult moroi in the area that had an interest in martial arts and in using offensive magic. It was completely open to all, and was free of charge. Up until that point, some people had been going to human martial arts clubs, and to the academies that their children attended when there was a workshop on, to see offensive magic being used. Tonight there was a banquet, with everyone who had contributed to the opening of this facility in attendance. Christian was not looking forward to having to spend the evening talking to either the nutty moroi activists who wanted this gym opened, or the snobs who had payed for it, but had no interest in actually _using_ it.

Dimitri sighed and got off the sofa, taking pity on his friend. "Come here," he said, and he started helping Christian with his tie. Christian was perfectly capable of doing his own tie, but his fingers kept fumbling with it. He was nervous about his speech, and had redone his tie about three times so far. He'd also practiced his speech so much that Dimitri, Rose and Lissa knew it nearly as well as Christian.

"This is going to be fun," Christian said, with a slight sneer, once Dimitri had finished. "Listening to Royals who are never going to set foot in the place tell each other how marvelous it is, or listening to the nut jobs complain about those lazy Royals. At least Mia will be there."

"At least now all the moroi in the area will have somewhere to practice offensive magic with one another," Dimiti pointed out. "They won't have to wait for instructors to come to the nearest academy."

"Yeah, but this is just Seattle," Christian responded, putting on his jacket. "One part, of one country. I know, I know," he said quickly, as Dimitri opened his mouth to speak. "Washington state has a huge moroi population, and this is a good start, but I've done the math. We'll need at least twenty more facilities like this one to serve the entire country, and don't get me started about globally."

"I know how many we need," Dimitri said, grabbing his coat and opening the door, checking the hallway. Christian walked out after him, putting on his own coat. "I helped you do the math. But I was going to say that the moroi want to make sure that this one is a success, before they start pouring money into other gyms. This may be popular at the start, but some people might get bored after a while. The Council is conscious of that." They were at the elevator at this point. Dimitri pushed the button, still keeping an eye on his surroundings. Security around the hotel was very tight, but some people were not happy with the new gym.

Christian conceeded that point, and they got into the elevator, pressing the button for the ground floor. The banquet was going to take place in one of the larger dining halls. The hotel they were staying in was the Hotel Andra, a stylish hotel in the middle of Seattle. It was chosen because of it's location to the new facility. It was still however, a five star hotel, complete with a dark mahogany front desk, modern, stylish, yet comfortable sofas in the lobby, and a large, cozy fireplace as well.

"Your parents are coming right?"

Dimitri grimaced. "Yes, they are. And I just know that my mother will try to talk to me while I'm on duty."

"You'd think she'd have figured out by now, that's a big no-no."

"You would, wouldn't you?" The doors opened at that point, and Dimitri got out first, inspecting the immediate surroundings. They then made their way through the lobby, and down the hall, to where the baquet was taking place. They paused in front of the door.

"Remind me again why you have to go on duty?"

"Because it wouldn't look right if I wasn't. Besides, I'm not the one who's been arguing with people, trying to get the ball rolling."

"You designed the program. A fact that everyone knows. People are going to want to talk to you anyway. Not just your mother."

Dimitri just looked at him, but didn't say anything as the door opened just then and Christian was announced. They strode in, taking their places, Christian near the head of the table, and Dimitri along the wall with his colleagues. It wasn't as terrible as they anticipated. Benedikt successfully managed to run interference between his wife and his son, and Mia kept Christian sane. He even managed to deliver his speech perfectly.

"How far _exactly_ is this club from the hotel?"

"Only one block," Chrsitian told Dimitri as they made their way through the lobby after the banquet. "Come on, we can easily walk." They'd reached the front doors, and Dimitri was looking at the taxi bank in front of the hotel, thinking. Christian and Mia had managed to convince him to go to a club that night after the banquet had ended. They were on a human schedule so any human guests wouldn't think anything strange was going on. Like, say, a large dinner, where the guests were composed of vampire royalty, and offensive magic was the main point of discussion. It was just after midnight, and Christian and Mia had been complaining that they needed something normal. Like a regular, run-of-the-mill bar. Mia had already gone ahead with some friends, but Christian had had to play nice a little longer with some of the patrons of the new facility.

"And you know _exactly_ where this club is?" Dimitri asked finally. Christian told him that he did, and so Dimitri agreed to walk, instead of getting a taxi. As they went, Christian stuffed his tie into his pocket, undoing the button of his shirt, and untucking it, Dimitri doing likewise with his own shirt. They looked like business men, who had just switched into 'party mode'.

It was a nice night, though cold, with a layer of slush over the road, considering it was the start of December. The roads were fairly busy for that time of night, but as they went further downtown, they soon became the only people around, with the occasional car passing. Dimitri was beginning to get an uneasy feeling about this neighbourhood.

"The club is only one block, right?"

"Yeah."

"We've just gone two." Dimitri grabbed Christian's arm, and they stopped abruptly. "You're lost, aren't you?"

Christian looked around, before turning back to Dimitri and saying "That's a strong possibilty." Dimitri sighe in frustration, before insisting that they go back to the hotel, and get a taxi. Christian didn't protest this suggestion, and they started to retrace their steps.

"What was that?" Christian came to a halt just outside an alleyway. He'd heard the tiniest of sounds down there, something that was too quiet for Dimitri's dhampir ears. Dimitri didn't even have time to insist that they keep moving, before he saw the red eyes looming out of the darkness, going straight for Christian.

Dimitri intercepted the strigoi, thrusting the heel of his palm into the strigoi's nose. His stake was out in a flash, but the strigoi – a young woman, moroi before she'd been turned - recovered quickly enough to dodge it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw another – this one a man - try to dart past him, but he struck out with his foot, unbalancing him.

Dimitri shouldered the male strigoi back into the alley, keeping out of reach of the female. Judging how quickly she had recovered from her nose being smashed, she was fairly powerful. She followed Dimitri down the alley, and the three of them started trading blows, Dimitri looking for an opening with either of them, making sure he was between them, and Christian. He'd been right – the woman was strong. Very strong. He aimed a right-hook towards her face, but she caught his fist, bending his wrist backwards, snarling. Pain shot through his arm, as he heard it snap . Worse, as soon as his arm, or wrist, broke, a flash of fire from the mouth of the alleyway told him something that he really didn't want to be true. There was three, and Christian had engaged the third. They were outnumbered.

Some part of Dimitri registered that these two were just a distraction. The one attacking Christian had waited until he was engaged, before getting a snack. It wouldn't be worth it, if it wasn't the boss – the other two would kill it for taking the moroi. Dimitri needed to get to Christian as fast as possible. He managed to slash at the srtigoi's face with the stake, causing her to leap backwards, howling in pain. Dimitri took the opening, driving his stake into her heart. The male – probably a weaker one – was startled that Dimitri had managed to kill his stronger companion. Dimitri took full advantage of his hesitation, driving his stake though his heart as well.

Pulling out his stake, he ran back to the mouth of the alley, to see Christian still fighting with the third and final strigoi. Dimitri, with some help from Rose - who was the hardest person to grab hold of that Dimitri had ever met - had drilled into Christian how to keep out of reach of your attacker. Christian was doing a very good job, and it was clear that he'd severely wounded the strigoi with his fire magic – there was a strong smell of burning flesh. Dimitri lunged at the strigoi from behind, staking it through the back. He screamed, fell down, and moved no more.

"Are you alright?" Dimitri asked quickly, scanning Christian for injuries. He had small cut on his cheek, and his knuckles were slightly bloody, but that seemed to be the worst of it. For the most part, he seemed to have managed to keep the strigoi away from him.

"I'm better than you," Christian pointed out, breathlessly. Both the magic, and the physical exertion had taken a lot out of him. He was talking about Dimitri's hand. It was already swollen, and a littled bruised. Christian glanced towards the alley way. His heightened moroi sight could just barely make out the other two strigoi. Dimitri was already dragging the third down towards them. He was craddling his right hand, which had been smashed. Dimitri was trying not to focus on the pain. Not even the amount of adrenelin coursing through him was able to numb it.

"Come on, we'll call the alchemists on the way back to the hotel," he said, once he'd returned to the mouth of the alley, but Christian was striding towards the bodies.

"Or," he said, holding his hands out over them. He then clicked his fingers, and the three of them burst into flames. They were a pile of ashes within seconds.

"That also works," Dimitri agreed, as Christian rejoined him, "But we still need to report this. Let's go." Dimitri hurried Christian away from there, completely on edge. He would have preferred to call someone to pick them up, but they were unsure as to where exactly they were. After about twenty minutes, they reached the hotel, going around to the back. They couldn't just walk in the front as they were. They were both a mess, and Dimitri had a broken wrist. The door was already open, and two guardians were waiting there, Dimitri having called ahead. Ushering the two of them inside, they shut and locked the door, before leading them upstairs, getting a report of what happened on the way. They were being taken to Olena, the only one in the building with a comprehensive medical background. Once they were cleaned up, they would be taken to a moroi medical facility in the area.

Bill opened the door, and their two escorts left to help with evacuating the moroi from the hotel. A strigoi attack a mere two blocks away had everyone on high alert. People had already been sent to go get Mia and her friends.

Olena was in the sitting room of the suite, making sure she had everything in the first aid box that she might need. She gasped when she saw her son. In tyring to stake the strigoi, he'd gotten a lot more blows than Christian had. Olena told them both to sit down, and made to look at Dimitri's arm, but he insisted that she check Christian first. She was going to protest that, but her husband shook his head, clapping his son's shoulders.

"Just look over Christian, Dima's not going anywhere."

"Neither am I, and he's got the broken arm," Christian pointed out. Dimitri however was adamant, resulting in Olena examining Christian first. Benedikt had only agreed with his son, because he knew that there was no way Dimitri would put himself before Christian, and they would only waste a lot of time arguing.

"Let's get this off, shall we?" Benedikt said, helping Dimitri take off his duster, and then his blazer, before rolling up his sleeve. "You two've had quite a night. Felipe is helping organise everyone's departure right now." Christian sighed. If everyone was being made to leave, then that meant that he wasn't going to be visiting the gym tomorrow to give a master class with Mia on offensive magic. It was the only thing that he'd been looking forward to.

"Nothing serious," Olena told Christian after a few moments. "You might have some bruises tomorrow that you don't remember getting, but you're fine. If a little tired. The doctors will still want to look you over at the hospital though."

"Okay, thanks," Christian said standing up. "I'll go change and get your stuff so we don't alarm the humans." He turned to Dimitri. "Your turn now." After saying that he'd be back in a few minutes, he left, Bill going along at Benedikt's suggestion.

"Danger magnets, all of you," Olena said, as she examined Dimitri's arm. "You, Rose, Lissa and Christian, can the four of you go anywhere without running into trouble?" Dimitri didn't say anything. He was regretting his decision not to insist on getting a taxi. But he knew of the club, knew that it was in a busy neighbourhood, making a strigoi attack outisde it unlikely, so walking had seemed like an okay thing to do. It was only supposed to have been one block. One block, in a decent neighbourhood.

"I'm going to need to set this," Olena sighe, "It'll make the doctor's work a little easier. Benedikt, could you hold his arm?"

"Mom, I can hold myself steady."

"Of course you can Dimochka," Olena replied absentmindedly, sorting out what she'd need to bind up his arm. Dimitri said a silent prayer that Christian had left the room before his mother had called him 'Dimochka'. She'd said it in front of Mikhail once. He'd kept teasing him about it for a whole month. Benedikt helped Olena hold Dimitri's arm, and it was – painfully – set. Olena had just finished wrapping it up in stiff bandages, when Christian, changed, and blood and sweat free, walked in with Bill.

"Got you some clothes," he said, dumping a bag on the sofa next to Dimitri. " You okay?" Dimitri told that he was, and advised him to go and see a feeder. Christian was looking paler than normal, and had dark circles under his eyes. "Good idea. How about after I do that, while you change, I'll go pack up our rooms? We'll get out of here faster." Dimitri agreed, and both Christian and Bill left the suite again. Dimitri followed his father into his and and his mother's bedroom, so he could help him change, while Olena packed up the first aid kit.

"Can you do me a favour?" Benedikt asked, unbuttoning Dimitri shirt. He'd tried to do it himself, but it wasn't easy one handed.

"Depends on what it is," Dimitri replied, as he shrugged out if the crumpled, bloody shirt. From behind Dimitri's back, Benedikt grimaced as he saw a few bruised on his arms and torso.

"Not to worry me like that again," Benedikt said, smiling slightly, pulling a T-shirt over Dimitri's head, and helping him put his broken arm through the hole. "I nearly had a heart attack when we were told. I'm glad that the two of you are okay."

Dimitri made no reply, and just tried to undo the button and zip of his pants. This he managed, and his father helped him get on a pair of jeans. His fingers protested – extemely painfully – whenever he tried to move them. He knew that his father was joking about the heart attack, that he was only trying to tell him that he was relieved that he was alright, but he couldn't get his mind off of how close they came to dying in that alley.

Benedikt sat on the bed. "Alright, what's wrong?" he asked, patting the spot next to him. Dimitri sighed and sat down. "Come on, tell me."

"Three strigoi," Dimitri said at last. "There were _three _strigoi. The thrid one caught me completely by surprise. If I had any other charge, they would have been killed. Christian knows how to fight, that's why he's alive. Not because of my skill, not because I'm a good guardian. With any other moroi, I would have been useless in protecting them." Dimitri scrinched up his eyes, and shook his head. "I would have walked away," he continued, "But the moroi wouldn't have. There are so many moroi who are unwilling to fight. If I'd been with one of them, they would have, without a doubt, _died_."

Benedikt put a hand on Dimitri's shoulder. "You think you're the only guardian who would've walked away without their charge? That's what's wrong with the system, most of us are still powerless, helpless. You were put in an impossible situation, and _you both lived_. You're right any other moroi probably would have been killed. But so would any other guardian faced with two of those monsters." He gave Dimitri a little shake. "You're right, a lot of us don't want to get invloved in the fighting. But you're changing that. Your work is doing more for the survival of our two races than any other guardian. Look how well you've taught Christian!" Benedikt nearly started laughing. "He's alive because of you, because of what you taught him."

Dimitri shrugged. "I get what you're saying," he said after a moment, "But still. I almost wish that Lissa was making combat training compulsory for all ages."

"I _do_ wish she was making it compulsory for all ages," Benedikt quiped. Though he was kind of serious. He gave Dimitri another little shake. "You did the best you could, and you _won_. I'm proud of you." Benedikt smiled. "Are you okay now?"

Dimitri nodded, saying he was, and Benedikt sent him out to the living room so that Olena could put his arm in a sling. He did feel better after talking to his father. He was right, they were alive, and who knew? Maybe in a few years, there would be hundreds of gyms like that all over the world. Maybe what had happened tonight might serve as a warning to moroi. They needed to know how to defend themselves. He was right to hope that. Word had gotten around, which resutled in every single moroi in the greater Seattle area, and some surrounding small towns, to start attending the gym. Four months later, the moroi began talk of opening another one in Moscow.


	19. Baby Names

Every book I read told me to prepare to be a little uncomfortable in the third trimester. My organs were going to get a little squished, I'd have to go to the bathroom every ten minutes, I'd be waddling everywhere, and I would just be uncomfortable in general. I'm not entirely sure, however, whether or not the pregnancy books were taking twins into account. To be honest, unless they were having a kicking war, or seeing who could hit mommy's kidneys and bladder the hardest, I didn't really feel like I was carrying twins. Oh sure, I was starting to get a little uncomfortable, but I didn't think that I was big enough, despite the doctor's assurances that the babies were healthy, normal weights for thirty-three weeks. Some women, she said, just had small baby bumps. She even knew some women who didn't show at all, and still had healthy sized children.

There was a chance that Lissa might be one of the women who didn't really show, considering she was barely showing now, at nearly eighteen weeks. I'd certainly been bigger than she was, and I wasn't going to set any records. There were a few other differences between my pregnancy and Lissa's. Now, the books said that every woman is different, and all that, but that didn't mean that we didn't have fun comparing notes.

For example, I kept getting mad cravings at ungodly hours of the night. Lissa on the other hand, while she often found it hard to sleep, wasn't sending Christian to McDonald's at three am. Baby A often felt like he or she was doing the lindy-hop, while Baby B seemed to be a little kick-boxer. Lissa's little one seemed to favour kicking over punching. Another difference beetween the two of us, was that her and Christian knew exactly what they were going to call the baby, despite the baby not being due until May. My due-date was in three weeks, and Dimitri and I _still_ had no idea. Though I had had a brain-wave earlier today.

It was nearly dinner time when I heard the front door open, and close. "Rose? Are you nearly ready?" Dimitri called coming into the bedroom, to see me sitting on it cross-legged, with the laptop open in front of me. As today was Christmas Eve, we were having dinner with Lissa, Christian and my parents. We always spent the twenty-fourth and fifth in the U.S, going to Russia for New Year's, or Dimitri's family coming for the holidays. They would be arriving on New Year's Eve, Pyotr coming this year as well. Saveliy unfortunately couldn't get time off. _We_ weren't going to Russia this year because I wasn't allowed on a plane.

He dropped his gym bag on the floor and leaned over, kissing me on the cheek. "What are you looking at? We're going to be late for dinner." He started emptying his gym bag, bringing the dirty clothes into the bathroom to put in the hamper.

"I had a great idea for baby names today," I told him, as he came out of the bathroom, and went to put his bag in the closet. I couldn't help but glance at his arm. He'd broken it a couple of weeks ago in a fight with strigoi, and had refused to let anyone heal it. I hadn't really taken sides in the argument between him and Sonya. On the one hand, I wanted him better, but a broken arm wasn't exactly life threatening, or even debilitating. My desire for him to be healed was waring with the desire to not cause any harm to Sonya. Lissa healing wasn't an option due to her pregnancy, and Adrian was in Rome with Sydney. The fact that he _had_ broken it, kind of freaked me out. It wasn't enjoyable finding out that husband was in the hospital.

"Okay," he said, sitting down on the bed next to me, looking at the laptop. "Hopefully we can finally agree on something. What's your big idea?" We were both getting kind of desperate. I mean, we really couldn't call them Baby A and Baby B forever.

I paused for dramatic effect. "We name them after our parents," I said finally.

Dimitri frowned. "Our parents would probably love the honour, but wouldn't people get confused?" He shrugged. "Roza, I think that it's a nice idea, but I'm not really sure that I want to do that. I want our childern to have their own names."

"So do I," I replied, "But that's only half of my brilliant idea. Did you know," I began, "That Olena in english, is Helen? And that Janine in russian, is Zhanna?"

"Helen and Zhanna," Dimitri repeated thoughtfully. "Helen Belikov, and Zhanna Belikov. I like them." He started smiling, and kissed me again. "And I think that our mothers will be delighted with the namesakes. But what about our fathers? Benedikt in english is Benedict with a C, and that brings us back to them not having their own names. I'm not sure that I like the name Abraham either. We'd still nickname him Abe."

"And that's where this handy little website comes in," I pointed at the screen. I was looking at a website that gave the meanings of names, as well as related names in other languages.

"Names related to Benedikt," Dimitri read off the screen. "This could work."

"I kind of like Benjamin," I told him, "Benjamin Belikov. But if you don't, then we could always give him a nickname. If we had as his middle name something like James, or John, we could call him B.J. What do you think?"

"Benjamin Belikov," Dimitri repeated, "Benjamin. I'm not really sure about that, though your B.J. idea could work. What about that one?" he said, pointing to the screen, "Bennett. What do you think? Sounds better with Belikov."

I considered. "Bennett Belikov," I said out loud, "I actually like that better." It did sound better with Belikov than Benjamin. "So should we put them on the short list, or just say that they're the ones we're going with? And I was thinking that instead of Abraham, we could go with Avram. That's Abraham in russian, right?"

Dimitri told me that it was, but we then decided not to shortlist those names. The more we said them, and thought about them, the more we loved them. We finally had our babies names. Though Dimitri pointed out something that I hadn't really considered, but probably should have.

Dimitri smiled dryly. "And if we have one boy, and one girl? How do we choose which one?"

My face fell. I really hadn't even thought of that. I groaned. More decisions. Dimitri started laughing. "We can just wait until they're born," he said, still laughing. "See if they look more like a Helen, or a Zhanna, a Bennett or an Avram. We can have the one we don't choose as the middle name." He kissed, me on the cheek again. "We don't have to decide this right away."

I sighed leaning onto his shoulder. Dimitri wrapped an arm around me. "The labour better be easier than deciding names." That caused Dimitri to start laughing again.

"At least we got somewhere," he said, placing his hand on my stomach. "We now have names that we like, that we love." He started to list them off "Helen Belikov." I started smiling. "Zhanna Belikov. Bennett Belikov." I was grinning now. "Avram Belikov."

"Are you sure that you don't want their last names to be 'Belikova' if they're girls?" I asked. We'd already discussed this, Dimitri insisting on Belikov, no matter the gender.

"Positive," he responded, "They're going to grow up in the U.S. and your american, we might as well follow those naming traditions. People will probably ingnore the A anyway."

"Technically, I'm turkish. But they will be either Dimitrovich, or Dimitrovna," I added, with a grin, "I'm putting my foot down."

Dimitri groaned. "How did you find out about the patronymics?"

"Your mother told me, Dimitri Benediktovich Belikov." I sat up, and looked at him, frowning once I saw his expression. "Why do you have such a problem with it? Don't you want to do it?"

"I just never liked it growing up," Dimitri shrugged, "I always hated it. I really hated it, I felt like I was too connected to my father. Rose, I really don't want to do that to our children."

"Do what?" I hesitated before speaking again. "Would your hatred maybe have to do with what your father did, and not so much the actual naming tradition?" I asked tentively. It was still a touchy subject with everyone. Understandably, of course.

"Possibly," Dimitri said slowly, after a moment. "But I'm still not really comfortable with it."

"You get along great with your father now. Do you still regret the patronymics?"

"No, I suppose I don't," he said after a few moments. "I'm still not sure though."

"Well just think about it. It would mean a lot to me. It would mean a lot to your mom too."

Dimitri just sighed, telling me that he would think about it. At least we had decided on first names. We still didn't know the sexes yet, despite having done the amniocentesis last week. Though we did know that they were fraternal. The rest of the results had all been fine, but since Dimitri didn't want to know the genders, then it wasn't really fair of me to find out, even if it was killing me not knowing. I knew it would just drive him crazy if I knew, and he didn't.

I couldn't stop thinking about his reluctance not to use the patronymics for the rest of the day. I knew that it had to do with Ben, and not any dislike of the tradition. I really hoped that he'd agree to it. Considering the fact that they weren't biologically his, it would mean an awful lot to me. It would give him another connection to the kids.

"Do you realise," Dimitri said that night as we lay in bed, "That this time next year, we'll be putting Santa presents under the tree?"

"That hadn't even occurred to me," I replied giggling, "But what if we go to Russia? We're not going to do presents from Grandfather Frost too, are we?"

"We'll deal with that when we have to," was the response. I was lying on my side, with Dimitri's arm around my stomach. I couldn't see his face, but I knew that he was smiling slightly. He kissed my cheek. "See you in the morning Roza."

If the babies let me get to sleep. They seemed to be under the impression that my bladder was a soccer ball. Ah, the joys of childbearing.


	20. Baby A and B Or is it 1 and 2?

I've gone to the Birthing classes. I've read all the books. I could tell you every single way to treat colic, and any other problem that is very common amongst newborns. We'd painted the babies' room yellow, and decorated it with painted animals and flowers, stuffed toys, and a rocking chair to make it easier to put them to sleep. We'd bought everything that we thought that we'd need, like diapers, and baby bottles, a stroller so we could go running with them, and these two cute little basinets so we could put them in our room for the first few weeks. We had a steriliser for the bottles, I'd even been practicing this turkish lullaby that I knew that Abe used to sing to me when I was a baby. I knew this because my mother had shown me a bunch of videos of when I was a baby. Dimitri and I had also chosen a nanny for when I go back to work, so we were convinced (well not _convinced_, but fairly confident) that we could handle our two gorgeous newborns. Well, we thought that we could handle the babies when they were here. Labour was something else entirely.

A sudden, sharp pain shot across my abdomen, waking me up. I put my hand over my stomach, and tried to breathe until it passed. When it did, I froze. That wasn't what I thought it was, was it? My due-date had been a couple of days ago, so it was _entirely_ possible. I got my answer a minute later, as I felt my waters break. Oh God. I sat up in the bed, reaching over and shaking Dimitri's shoulder.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up!"

"Rose, what's wrong?" Dimitri sat up, looking completely alert, like I hadn't just woken him up at two in the morning. He switched on the bedside lamp, before turning back to me. He sighed. "You don't want a fish burger do you?" Dimitri moved his leg a little, frowning. "Why is the bed wet?"

"Oh, I don't know," I said, feeling really nervous, "Maybe because my water just broke. That might have something to do with it!" I think I may have sounded a little hysterical. Dimitri's jaw dropped, but he then lept into action. In fact, he lept so fast that his legs got caught in the duvet, sending him to the floor. He quickly got up though.

"Okay, come on, let's get you up, and, and dressed, and I'll call Lissa and our parents." Dimitri helped me up, and I started to change while he ran into the sitting room to make the calls. I reminded him to call the clinic as well. I was in labour. _I was in labour_. I would be holding my children in my arms in a few hours. Oh God. By the time Dimitri came back into the bedroom, I was dressed, and sitting on the bed, trying to compose myself.

"Your mother said not to go to the hospital yet, to wait for them to get here. Are you feeling okay? Are you having any contractions? Do you need anything?" Dimitri was much more in control than I was. I was still trying to remember how to breathe.

"I've only had one contraction," I told him. He told _me_ to breathe, and that everything would be okay, to just think about the babies, that we would be meeting them in a few hours. I focused on my breathing, and started to smile. I was about to become a mom. My kids were about to come into the world.

"We're going to be parents," Dimitri said smiling, "Soon, we will be able to hold our children. Everything will be fine, just relax." At that moment the front door opened, and seconds later Lissa rushed in, Christian right behind her. Both of them were fully dressed.

"Let's get this party started, shall we?" Christian said, clapping his hands together, grinning. Dimitri gave him a look.

"How many contractions have you had?" Lissa asked, sitting beside me on the bed, and feeling my forehead.

"Lissa, she's in labour, not sick," Christian pointed out, "Come on, we'll take Rose into the sitting room, and you get dressed," he added to Dimitri, "You can't go to the clinic in your pajamas. You did call the clinic right?"

Dimitri nodded, and Christian and Lissa helped me into the sitting room. I'd just sat down, when my parents came in the front door. They looked just as excited as the other two. After asking how I was feeling, the door opened once more, and Olena and Ben walked in, meaning I had to answer the same questions all over again. Dimitri was dressed at this point, and suggested that we go to the hospital _now_.

"When was your last contraction?" Olena asked, sitting beside me, my mother on my other side. Olena and Ben hadn't gone back to Baia with everyone else, deciding to wait until the babies were born. My mother had taken time off to do the same.

"I've only had one, and it was about twenty minutes ago," I told her.

Olena shook her head. "I don't think we need to go to clinic just yet," she said, "Wait until they're about four minutes apart. You'll be much more comfortable here, during the early part of labour."

"But her water broke," Dimitri pointed out.

"Your mother's right," my mom said. Her and Olena had made up after the whole 'Rose should leave work' fiasco. "Unless the doctor told you to come in earlier, you should wait. Have a bath, relax. It'll be better for all of you."

Dimitri looked mutinous, but an argument was forstalled by Ben asking did he call the clinic. Dimitri said that he did, and was about to protest staying, but Ben pointed out that he and his mother waited just as long with him and his sisters. Not to mention the fact that Olena delivered three out of her four current grandkids. Dimitri still protested however.

"It'll be safer at the hospital, just in case anything happens," he said, "I think that we should go _now_."

"I don't know, I feel great," I told him. That was true. The contraction was long gone, and I didn't really want to spend hours in the clinic.

"Rose," Dimitri said in a voice of forced calm, kneeling down beside the sofa, and grabbing my hand, "I really think that we should go to the clinic. _Please_."

I didn't think that was necessary right now. My earlier panic had evaporated, or was at least surpressed, and I felt quite calm now. About thirty minutes after the first contraction. I had another one. This one was worse. I decided to take my mother's advice and have a bath, and a cup of tea, despite Dimitri's protests. Everyone decided to stay, even though Dimitri and I pointed out that it was three in the morning, and it would probably be a while. That had only been directed at our fathers and Christian. No-way was Lissa or my mother leaving me. Not a chance.

Dimitri - very reluctantly - called the clinic again, and spoke to the doctor. She agreed that it was okay if we were to wait a while, much to Dimitri's annoyance. I thought that it was okay though. Everything would be okay, I could do this. I could do this.

* * *

"Breathe, in, and out. Two short ones in, one long one out. You can do this."

"No I can't," I moaned, clutching Dimitri's hand waiting for the contraction to subside. "Stop saying that!"

We'd arrived at the clinic an hour ago, and my contractions were less than two minutes apart now, and lasted a whole minute. I'd been in labour for eight hours, was exhausted, had – in a fit of insanity – decided not to take any pain medication, because it was supposed to be better for the baby, and was now convinced that I was not able for this. I couldn't do it, I just couldn't. Why did I agree to do this?

I squeezed Dimitri's hand as another contraction hit me. "Why did you agree to let me do this? Getting shot was less painful!" It passed. "Where the hell is my mother?" It was just me, Dimitri and the midwife in the room at the moment, and I couldn't, for the life of me, remember her name.

"You're doing great," Dimitri told me soothingly, brushing my hair back from my face. "Just concentrate on the kids, you're doing this for them, and you're doing amazing. You can do this."

I disagreed, and told him so, but was cut off by another contraction. I think they were getting closer together, and were lasting longer. "Where is my mom?"

"I'm here, I'm here, I was just updating your father," my mother said, coming in the door, Lissa behind her with some ice-chips. "How far apart now?" she added to the midwife.

"One minute and thirty-two seconds," the woman answered. Then she added to me. "I'm just going to go and get the doctor, so she can see how dialated you are now, okay?" I barely noticed that she left however, because I was hit with another contraction. My mother grabbed my other hand, and now I had three people telling me that I was doing great, and to just breathe. I was going to kill someone.

The doctor came in a few minutes later, asking me how I was doing. I suggested getting a c-section. It would be faster.

"She's a little tired, and frustrated," Dimitri said, running a cool cloth over my forehead.

"What gave it away?" I growled, nearly doubling up as another wave of contractions swept over me. "They are _really_ getting close."

"Nine centimeters," Dr. James announced after examining me. She then started giving orders to the midwife that I really didn't get. What she said after that I did understand, but only because I was not happy about it.

"What do you mean I can only have two of them in here with me?" That meant that either Lissa or my mother had to leave. It's not like I was kicking out Dimitri. I looked between the two of them. Neither of them wanted to leave either. "I can't choose," I groaned, lying back on the pillows, with Dimitri's hand in a death-grip because I was having another contraction. "You pick."

"I'll go," Lissa decided after a few minutes. "You should be here for this." To the doctor she added "Do I have to leave now?"

Dr. James checked how dialated I was at that point. "I'm afraid so, Your Majesty," she told her politely and appolojetically. "Okay, Rose," she said to me once Lissa had left, "It's time to push."

* * *

"Will you two stop that before he chokes?" Janine whispered disapprovingly to Eddie and Mia's boyfriend Jake. For the last ten minutes they'd been trying to flick pieces of popcorn into a sleeping Christian's open mouth. It was just after one, and Eddie had just come along with Jill, deciding to take a lunch break. Mia had come by with Jake an hour ago. She didn't have work that day, training really, seeing as she had taken time off because Jake was visiting while he was on break from university.

"Sorry," Eddie whispered back sheepishly. Christian had been awake since two that morning, and had only fallen asleep fifteen minutes ago. Abe, Benedikt and Olena were still awake. Lissa was almost nodding off. They were all exhausted, but didn't really want to sleep, though Rose and Dimitri had insisted on everyone going home, and coming back later. They wanted to know about the babies.

Janine had returned to the waiting room just after Mia and Jake had arrived, but had refused to tell anyone whether or not they were boys, or girls. "Rose is fine, and the babies are healthy," she'd said, "That's all I'm going to tell you." They were all getting a little impatient. It was lucky then, that Dimitri came out at that moment. He looked exhausted, but thrilled, not to mention incredibly proud. Christian jerked awake.

There was a few minutes of celebration as everyone congratulated Dimitri, and asked how they were all doing. Christian handed a twenty over to Eddie. He'd lost the bet about whether or not they were boys or girls.

"Would you like to meet your grandchildren?" he asked his and Rose's parents. He couldn't stop smiling. To the others he added "I've just called Mikhail and Sonya, they'll be here in a few minutes, so the godparents can go in next."

Christian told him to wake him when it was his turn, and Janine, Abe, Benedikt and Olena followed Dimitri through the double doors, down the hall, and into Rose's room. She was holding two bundles in her arms, and like Dimitri looked tired, but happy. Admitedly though, she did look much more tired. She smiled when everyone entered. Olena went around to the other side of Rose's bed, gazing at the two sleeping children. Benedikt came to look over her shoulder. Janine stood at the end of the bed.

"Little girl, you're glowing," Abe told her, kissing her on the cheek. "How do you feel?"

"That was the most tiring, painful experience of my life," Rose answered, with a smile. "Yet, for some reason, I am incredibly happy and satisfied." Dimitri took one of the bundles from Rose. The baby squirmed a little, while the other gurgled slightly.

"We'd like you to meet," he started, "Helen Belikov." He placed her in his mother's arms. "Named after one of her grandmothers." Olena was speechless. She couldn't believe that they'd done that, it was so sweet of them

"And this is Zhanna Belikov. Named after her other grandmother." He placed Zhanna in Janine's arms, who like Olena was speechless. They knew that they had translated the names, and they both loved the idea of it. They thought that it was so very sweet of them.

They stayed for another twenty minutes, before leaving to get some rest, and leave Rose feed the girls. As they passed the waiting room, they sent in Lissa, Christian, Sonya and Mikhail. They were all delighted, and so happy for Rose and Dimitri. Janine and Olena were really honoured. Once they all got to their respective rooms, they all thought that they were too excited to sleep. As soon as their head hit the pillows however, they were passed out within seconds.

On the seventeenth of January, after ten hours of labour, and their mother nearly breaking their father's hand from squeezing it too hard, Helen Dimitrovna Belikov and Zhanna Dimitrovna Belikov were born.

**A/N:- Like the names? They're not identical, just in case anyone was wondering**


	21. Wedding no 5

I was woken up – as usual – by the sound of a baby crying. That cry was quickly joined by a slightly more high pitched cry, that I identified as Helen. Like me and her father, I don't think she appreciated Zhanna waking us up. I couldn't wait until the girls started sleeping through the night. No mother likes the sound of her children crying in general, I mean it wasn't just the two am feedings. Although don't get me wrong – I was tired. Helen and Zhanna were were five weeks old at this point, and were waking every three hours for a feed. It wasn't one at a time either. If one started crying, then the other would wake up, even if she wasn't hungry. Though she normally was, but it had happened a few times.

I groaned as I rolled over, and sat up. Dimitri was already up, and coming around to the end of the bed. He yawned as he picked up Helen from her bassinet, and started to rock her, walking up and down. I switched on the lamp, and picked up Zhanna, making sure that she was in fact hungry, and didn't just wake up for some other reason, like she was cold. Dimitri had quieted Helen, sitting down beside me, and mumbling to her in russian. Judging from the fact that she was still whimpering a little, she was also hungry.

"I'll feed her in a second," I said, Dimitri yawning again as he nodded, "I'm not going to lie, I will be a happy woman when they sleep through the night."

"I hate to break it to you Roza," Dimitri chuckled, "But that might be a while." He had Helen up on his shoulder, and was rubbing her back. Once Zhanna was finished, I handed her to him and he put her on his other shoulder, before I took Helen. Dimitri burped Zhanna, then just held her for a little while. This had become our routine over the past month. I'd feed one of the girls, while Dimitri calmed the other. Then we'd swap. We'd decided – in consultation with our mothers – to try and get them to sleep less during the day when Dimitri went back to work. Hopefully they would be sleeping through the night by the time that _I_ went back to work. We were not optimistic. Though, as Lissa pointed out, that was probably just the sleep deprivation talking.

Fed, burped, changed and put back to sleep, we put the girls back down, and just flopped back on the bed. Dimitri pulled me to him, and I rested my head on his chest, curling up, while he still had his feet on the floor.

"Mmm... silence," I groaned, my eyes tightly shut. Last night, Helen had been fussy, and had kept us up for hours, eventually setting off Zhanna. We'd resorted to calling Lissa for backup. I'd been close to tears, and after reading horror stories about mothers who'd ended up shaking their babies out of frustration, I'd decided to take a break. I was grateful that tonight had gone so much smoother.

Dimitri shushed me, chuckling, asking me to please not wake them. Then he placed a kiss on the top of my head. Moving down to my forhead, then my mouth, his hands roaming over my waist. He rolled us over, so that he was on top.

"What are you doing?" I asked in between kisses.

"Well, since we're up," Dimitri responded, deepening the kiss.

"That's not a good idea. I'll fall asleep on top of you, and that's more to do with our darling daughters, than you." That was true, I was exhausted, and was barely managing to respond to his kisses.

Dimitri pulled back, his eyebrow raised. "You were already falling asleep on top of me. I thought that I'd just try to wake you up." He kissed my neck. "We haven't had sex in over two months Rose."

"I know, it's just – " I broke off.

"Just what?" Dimitri was puzzled, picking up on my hesitation. I tried to tell him to forget it, and I got under the covers, but he didn't let it go. He got under next to me and put his arms around my waist. "Roza what is it?"

"I don't know, I guess," I began. I sighed and continued, "I just don't really feel all that sexy." I shrugged.

"Rose, what are you talking a – "

"None of my clothes fit anymore, or they make me look frumpy, plus I'm all – " I stopped talking, sitting up. I held out my arms, while puffing out my cheeks. "You know?"

"No," Dimitri said slowly, sitting up as well. I could tell that he was trying not to laugh. "I really don't." I huffed. "Roza, you're beautiful, absolutely beautiful."

"Yeah, but I'm all, you know, bleh. And you're supposed to say that." I really did not feel at all good looking and was pretty self-conscious about my body, mainly due to the fact that I'd gained forty pounds over the las few months. The fact that we were going to Sonya and Savva's wedding, and I had to wear a dress was making matters worse.

Dimitri tried to reassure me a little more, but I pointed out that we really needed our sleep. We were flying into Omsk tomorrow, with my parents and Lissa and Christian. That didn't really go to plan however, as the twins were hungry again four hours later.

* * *

I flopped down onto the bed. We'd just had dinner, seeing the lovebirds drive off to Omsk to catch a flight to Prague that morning, where they were spending two weeks for their honeymoon. It had been a long week. First, Savva had to pay a ransom for Sonya, as basically the bride's side of the family were keeping her at the house. Savva, his brother and a bunch of his friends had come to try and get her back. That had been pretty funny to be perfectly honest. I'd barely been able to stand from laughing at Savva as he completed the tasks Ben, Dimitri and Yeva had devised. Once he'd reclaimed his bride, we then went to the church.

Then there was the reception. Oh boy, what a reception. It lasted for, literally, three days. Dimitri and I had my parents take the girls back to the hotel after a while. It was just too much for them.

"That is it, right?" I mumbled, as I lay on bed. Dimitri was looking for something in his suitcase.

"What do mean?"

"I mean please tell me that you crazy russians are all partied out."

Dimitri laughed, and lay down net to me, putting an arm around my shoulders. I heard him put something on the bedside table, but didn't see what it was, as my eyes were closed. "Don't even pretend that you didn't have fun."

"All right, fine," I laughed, "It was a blast. I'm just glad that our reception didn't last three days."

"It lasted a day and a half," Dimitri pointed out. I just shrugged, and we fell quiet for a while after that. It was just after ten, and we were exhausted. Everyone else was asleep, and we'd just put the girls down, hopefully for about three hours or so. Rurik was staying with his grandparents, while his parents were on their honeymoon, Savva also adopting him just after the ceremony. My parents were staying here as well.

"Sonya looked so happy didn't she?" I said after a few moments. She'd been smiling the entire time, her attention completely occupied by her new husband, and vice versa.

"She did," Dimitre replied," I don't think I've ever seen her happier." I could hear the smile in his voice. He added after a few minutes, "I've got you somehting." He sat up, and I did likwise.

"What did you get me?" I asked grinning. Dimitir didn't say anything, he just smiled slightly, and handed me a silver, flat, rectangular box. I lay it across my legs, and undid the ribbon around it. I took off the lid.

"Oh what is this?" I asked laughing, holding it up. It was a black, lacey, negligie from Victoria's Secret, complete with matching bra and panties.

"Well, since you haven't been feeling all that sexy lately, I thought that I'd get you a little something," Dimitri told me, kind of nervously, as though he was worried that I might no like it. I kissed him, cutting off whatever he was about to say next.

"I love it," I breathed, once we'd broken apart. Dimitri suggested that I go and try it on now, as he couldn't wait to see me in it. Giggling, I ran into the bathroom with my dressng gown. When I came back, Dimitri's eyes were filled with nothing but lust, and seeing him look at me like that did wonders for any self-consciousness that I had.

Though to be perfectly honest, I didn't really have that outfit on for very long.


End file.
